Defense Workforce: Graying, Not Greening
Clinton-era defense acquisition czar Jacques Gansler gave a presentation in mid-July demonstrating the benefits of public-private partnerships in bolstering efficiency. But he also demonstrated something else: if you want to work with the Pentagon’s civilian workforce, you better get used to dealing with old folks. According to Gansler’s charts, 76% of the Pentagon’s civil servants were born before 1965, meaning they are at least 45 years old. Baby Boomers (people born between 1946 and 1964) make up 42% of the nation’s civilian work force, but at the Pentagon they are 69% of workers — and an additional 7% were born before the boomers! About 50% of the national workforce consists of people born after 1964, but in the defense department they’re only 24% of the civilian workforce.
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