Minnesota employers keep searching hard for talent. They are investing in recruiting campaigns, technology tools, apprenticeships and new workforce partnerships. Yet one of the strongest talent pipelines in the state is hiding in plain sight: experienced workers over 50.
According to American Community Survey data on CareerForce.MN.gov, more than 70% of Minnesotans ages 55 to 64 are employed and workers over 55 currently hold more than one in five jobs (23%) in Minnesota. Nationally, the Census Bureau reported a 55+ labor force participation rate of 39.1 percent, and Minnesota continues to outperform national statistics (40.9%).
Recent DEED Labor Market Information data underscores why this matters: health care and social assistance reported more than unfilled 31,000 openings in the latest Job Vacancy Survey, and manufacturing is projected to have more than 92,000 production openings through 2034, driven in part by retirements and career changers. With more workers leaving the workforce than being born into it, where will Minnesota employers find the talent they need?
One answer to that question is clear: Minnesota cannot meet its workforce needs while allowing experienced talent to remain underused. Workers over 50 bring wisdom, reliability, customer insight, institutional knowledge, leadership maturity and the ability to mentor emerging talent. Many are ready to work beyond traditional retirement markers through extending career transitions, flexible schedules, returnships, part-time leadership or consulting assignments. Skills-based hiring could bring many talented older workers back into the workforce without requiring that they earn new credentials and instead show they already have the skills and experience to succeed in a role.
But too often, outdated and inaccurate stereotypes about age, technology, compensation or adaptability keep employers from seeing the value directly in front of them. Overlooking experienced workers over 50 is like walking around with a winning big-money lottery ticket in your pocket and never bothering to check the numbers. The value is already there. The opportunity is already within reach. But unless employers take it out, look at it, and act on it, they will never realize what they are holding.
As an expert in age-inclusive workforce strategy, I can tell you definitively that employers with the will to act can successfully translate labor-market reality into practical workforce strategies that capitalize on the untapped treasure of older workers. How? By rethinking screening criteria, designing flexible roles, building retention pathways, training hiring managers to recognize conscious and unconscious age bias, and creating partnerships that connect employers with experienced workers who are ready to contribute.
To Minnesota employers who have not yet embraced this workforce solution: now is the time to check the ticket in your pocket and futureproof your workforce. Stop screening out long careers, nontraditional resumes or perceived overqualification. Start asking yourself who your present hiring systems may be missing and what experienced workers could contribute if given a clear pathway in.
Experience Powers Minnesota—but only if employers choose to recognize it, recruit it, and build age-inclusive workplaces where it can thrive. Workers over 50 are not a backup plan; they are a winning talent ticket hiding in plain sight.
- Contact a CareerForce location near you for assistance meeting your workforce needs
- Meet your regional team of employer services specialists
Author bio: GreySource is an age-inclusive workforce strategy expert helping Minnesota employers recognize, recruit, and retain experienced workers over 50 as a critical talent pipeline. GreySource partners with employers and workforce leaders to move past outdated stereotypes and build practical pathways that turn experience into immediate workforce advantage. Founder and CEO Kim Anderson, NDCCDE, CDR, serves as the convenor lead for Age Friendly Minnesota’s Vital Contributors to the Workforce Taskforce and can be contacted at kim@greysource.com www.GreySource.com.
