Looks like Washington Post Editorial Page Editor Fred Hiatt sort of put his foot in his mouth -- or his pen as the case may be -- in an April 27 editorial where he as much as called America's older workers "lumbering" and less talented than "younger, nimbler" employees. In a nation that has one of its largest blocks of citizens in the "older" category, those over 40, it seems like Hiatt just insulted the largest number of Americans. Not the best way to sell newspapers, eh?
In his headlined "600,000 Bad Hires? Making Federal Jobs Cool Once Again," Hiatt seems to be urging The One to come to the rescue of the jobs market. Well, not real jobs, but government jobs, anyway.
Here is how he jabs workers over 40.
The opportunity lies not only in the huge number of looming vacancies but also in two factors driving young people to consider government jobs: excitement about President Obama -- and the fact that nobody but the government is hiring. The federal government, currently old (one-quarter of the workforce is under 40, compared with one-half in the private sector) and often lumbering, has a chance to become younger, nimbler and more talented.
Apparently Hiatt misses the singular fact that "younger, nimbler" workers are also inexperienced. But, just as apparently experience is meaningless in Hiatt's world of youth worship.
Hiatt states that in the next four years 600,000 federal workers will need to be hired because of retiring workers. I find this number a tad high since we have a retirement age population that is increasingly not retiring for all sorts of reasons, not all of them necessarily financial. Of course, it is true that many thousands of our government workers will be retiring but do we really need all those jobs filled in the first place?
Hiatt's worries are all in the wrong direction. Instead of being worried that we don't have enough applicants to fill government jobs, he should be worried over how we are going to eliminate those jobs that we don't need anyway.
Naturally, Hiatt made this another excuse to indulge his Bush Derangement Syndrome by attacking the Bush administration's efforts to get rid of useless and underperforming federal employees.
That means only a president can turn things around, and only by dint of constant and aggressive effort. The Bush administration talked about measuring and rewarding performance, a good idea but one that was implemented so ideologically -- combining pay-for-performance with a reduction of collective bargaining and appeals rights -- that it alienated much of the workforce, Stier says.
Yet, at the same time he is dinging Bush for being "ideological" in his policies, he recently celebrated similar policies attempted by DC School Chancellor Michelle Rhee. Recently Hiatt praised Rhee for her "aggressive" effort to measure and reward performance in the DC schools. Hiatt can't make up his mind if measuring workers on performance is a good idea or a bad one. Or maybe he has made up his mind. It's only bad when the Bush administration does it.
And, naturally, it's all an emergency. Obama must hurry because "they don't have much time" as he quotes one of those ubiquitous "experts" as telling him. And what is the solution that Hiatt and his "expert" think will cure our ills? More government money and more government programs.
Ugh. Is there nothing these socialists don't think can be fixed by throwing government money at it?
No wonder the scariest words in the English language are these: I'm from the government and I'm here to help.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
Warner, it might just be
April 28, 2009 - 06:22 ET by motherbeltWarner, it might just be that he realizes that performance has nothing to do with government jobs!
The federal government, currently old (one-quarter of the workforce is
under 40, compared with one-half in the private sector) and often
lumbering, has a chance to become younger, nimbler and more talented.
Right. Kick out all those old fogies (make them retire at 40!) and bring in the young and the hip, in keeping with the "hipness" of the President.
That's what I'm talkin' about!!!
They might say "Wow, that sucks!" But at least they'll say "Wow!" -Duff Goldman, the Ace of Cakes
I resembled that remark
April 28, 2009 - 06:32 ET by theduck6I can assure you there are some people in federal government who are busting their humps. Those who do know who is doing the same in other departments and they are the ones keeping the agencies from total collapse. Why not get rid of the dead wood? Same reason it costs 2-3 thousand more to make an "American" car. Starts with a U and sounds like onion.
Frankly the work ethic of the rookies I've encountered has been atrocious. The doers and go getters I know are old fogies who refuse to give in and do the minimum. There are exceptions to the rule but stereotypes are only dangerous when applied to all as they are usually based in some degree of truth.
LOL
April 28, 2009 - 06:35 ET by Warner Todd HustonAND they make you cry just the same, too.
Be sure and visit my home blog PubliusForum.com.
No offense duck...
April 28, 2009 - 06:36 ET by motherbeltI really need to start using that \sarc tag more often.
They might say "Wow, that sucks!" But at least they'll say "Wow!" -Duff Goldman, the Ace of Cakes
Re Resemble
April 28, 2009 - 09:34 ET by slickwillie2001No doubt there are many that bust their butts, but there are also many that play solitaire on their office computer for a couple of hours a day in order to average out their productivity. I know because some are friends of mine and I have even seen the game being played. If they are too productive, they will make some other employees look bad, so they get 'a little talking to' if they work too hard.
And re the next generation, I agree entirely. If you are in management today you have to adopt a split personality, and deal with our (?) generation one way and the younger folks a different way. The young grew up in the age of broken government education so they know a whole lot less than they think they do, yet they are filled up to the gills with self-esteem. They need an almost daily dose of praise for mediocre work, or they start to feel unappreciated. Try that with an 'old lumbering' guy and they will look at you like you have a third eye on your forehead.
Sounds like an
April 28, 2009 - 09:00 ET by SpaceManSpiffSounds like an opportunity... to create a whole NEW generation of worthless, lazy, government slobs!
Did Orwell predict the future? Or are the enemies of freedom following Orwell's example?
***cringe***
April 28, 2009 - 09:59 ET by klchadwickokay, so i'm definitely not one of the "older" ones on the work force yet, (although at 30 some of the "kids" that i see around think that i am) but eventualy one day i will be....as will this tool.
personally, i prefer having the older (not wet behind the ears carrying their blankey to the job) working for me. i find the biggest advantage is that they are actually willing to work....you know, put in an honest days work for an honest days pay?
a lot of the new "young turks" are of the y-gen....as in why should i do anything? it seems that a lot of those that are coming after me (maybe 8-10yrs younger) have suddenly expected EVERYTHING to be handed to them on a silver platter...and THAT definitely gives me the "red ass".
no, i prefer the more experienced ones...and not during the job at hand. those older than i may not always be wiser, but they usually have seen a hell of a lot more and i for one can appreciate that and learn from them!
http://politicaldesert.wordpress.com
Lumbering old people
April 28, 2009 - 11:42 ET by grumpyoldbYup, I'm old. I have had open heart surgery, and joint replacement, and I don't get around as well as I used to. BUT I also speak 7 languages and have multiple degrees and certifications in my specialty. And GUESS WHO all those young up and comers go to when they can't figure anything out???
Guess which part of my posterior the illustrious WaPo editor can kiss (after I've had a couple bean burritos for lunch...)
All I can say to them is ".... and the horse you rode in on"...
grumpyoldb
April 28, 2009 - 15:48 ET by klchadwickI know that I'm only 30 and only slightly ahead of Gen-Y, but will you marry me? lol.
In all seriousness, people used to ask me all the time why I spent so much time with my parents(they would kill me if they thought I was calling them "old"!), grandparents and like going to the adult community centers or events at the retirement communities. Notice the key word in that sentence..."used" to ask me. Whenever anyone would mention it, I would always give a frank answer...You can only learn so much from books, TV Shows and other forms of media, but when you hear about it from a direct source it not only makes it more real, you get the real story!
One of my grandfathers was a traveling salesman to support 5 kids, a wife and a mother-in-law that all lived under his roof. But he also used to love to play the organ and was self taught. Being as though music has always been a love of mine, I would sit on the bench with him (going back as far as I can remember and even farther since I have pics w/the two of us when I was around two or three) and he would show me how he played, with me attempting to do what he did. During those times I learned a lot. He wasn't just a traveling salesman, he was also a husband, a father and a grandfather...but even before those times he was an orphan, then adopted, then had to leave home at the age of 13 due to a severe shortage of money. He started out in the streets of Detroit and worked his way over to Boston where he worked on merchant ships until he was old enough to join the Navy and then entered WWII voluntarily. Listening to his stories made me not only appreciate what I had more, it made me appreciate HIM more and had me yearning for more knowledge. He would sometimes tell me just enough to pique my curiosity and when I would ask him to tell me more, he would tell my mom to take me to the library so I could do some reading on the subjects and then a few days later I would be back over there talking about what I read versus what he lived. It was AWESOME!
Situations were the same with all of my grandparents and I am lucky enough to still have two of them. My grandfather was the second person to hold my daughter when she was born with my husband being the first. I sat in my parents living room and watched the fall of the Berlin Wall with my grandmother as she told me what times were like when it went up. I was a pre-teen then and thought it was so cool to sit there and think that she was an adult before the wall went up, was married when it was built, raised five kids and buried her husband and was sitting there with me when it came down.
Knowledge like this can be learned, but not truly experienced to the point that you feel all of that history. I don't understand the generations that are behind me all that well and unfortunately I think part of the problem is that they DON'T stop and listen to those that are older and most of the time (not always, but most) wiser. I think that a lot of people never stop to think what the world was like before they were born, before computers and ipod, etc. Where do they think that this stuff came from? Who do they think thought this stuff up? Who do they think we all have to thank for the world that we live in?
Anyways, I would just like to say on my own behalf and on the behalf of those that DO open their eyes and ears to those around them, young old and inbetween.......thanks!
http://politicaldesert.wordpress.com
The guys article
April 28, 2009 - 07:07 ET by MidAmericaThe guys article rambles quite a bit and is very short on the specifics of what he thinks is a 'talented' worker but methinks his main concern is that as many young obamabots get hired into government jobs as soon as possible.
ObamaMorons Need Only Apply
April 28, 2009 - 09:16 ET by Chicagoray40" methinks his main concern is that as many young obamabots get hired into government jobs as soon as possible. "
I agree America... their only concern is to fill up all these lifer gman postitions with Obama subversives to toe the company line from top of the scum chain to the bottom.
"two factors driving young people to consider government jobs: excitement about President Obama"
Warner hits it there as well, it's all about the "Cult of Obama" and extending this "government by liberal committee" puppet regime past the normal 8 year shelf life.
I only pray that I have no children to suffer the likely future this country is facing. The very one our granparents admonished in Europe 50 years ago with blackface painted on it.
Two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity; and I’m not sure about the universe. –
Albert Einstein
Humm
April 28, 2009 - 07:24 ET by jdripperI suggest that Fred Hiatt lead by example. He needs to surrrender his job so that someone under 40 can have it. If you injected new and more youthful blood into the Washington Post they might make real money.
Jack
"If at age 20 you are a conservative then you have no heart. If at age 30 you are a liberal then you have no brains." Sir Winston Churchill
I'm sure it's the 'young &
April 28, 2009 - 07:27 ET by P. AaronI'm sure it's the 'young & hip attitude that keeps the WaPo's circulation numbers rocketing ever upward too, right?
really? sure about that?
April 28, 2009 - 08:02 ET by John WISTUNNING SENIOR MOMENT- A very self-important college freshman attending a
recent football game took it upon himself to explain to a senior citizen
sitting next to him why it was impossible for the older generation to
understand his generation: "You grew up in a different world, actually an
almost primitive one," the student said, loud enough for many of those
nearby to hear. "The young people of today are much more advanced than
people your age. We grew up with television, jet planes, space travel,
man walking on the moon, and the internet. We have cell phones, nuclear
energy, electric and hydrogen cars, computers, automated manufacturing,
amazing technologies and..." pausing to take another drink of beer.
The senior took advantage of the break in the student's litany and said, "You're right, son. We didn't have those things when we were young...so we invented them. Now, you arrogant little shit, what are YOU doing for the next generation?"
The applause was resounding... I love senior citizens!
Hey Hiatt! Better think twice next time!
Having designed things
April 28, 2009 - 08:34 ET by 10ksnookerThat now reside on the moon, this is just delicious.
I find most young people I meet to be totally clueless. Perfect no nothing fodder for the science hoaxers.
Working for the government
April 28, 2009 - 08:06 ET by Dan The Man 2Working for the government is a different animal. Young go getters quickly understand that their talents are wasted for the most part in government work. They either quit and get a job where they will be appreciated or they stay and push against the system or they succumb to oblivion.
In my case I have realized I want teh pension benefits and have succumbed to oblivion over the 27 years I have worked for teh government. For me working at the city there is no union, I hate them, but for feds they have weak unions. Remember the Air Traffic Controllers, they had unions too and look where it got them. It is illegal for government workers to strike.
Now government is needed and workers are needed to run the machine. The machine is slow and cumbersome and does not respond well to change. So suggestions are not welcomed or the familiar phrase "We have always done it that way" or "If it aint broke dont fix it" and they have some merits when dealing with cumbersome governments.
And hiring is slower than mollases as it may take months to get a person hired. And the management doesnt start the process of getting lists until the position is vacant. My wife, who also works for the city, is hiring now and it has taken here 3 months to hire somebody. She had to request lists along with documentation of whya we need the hire, then she slogs thru 350 applicantion for a clerk position then a panel is assembled for hiring and the best 5 or 10 are interviewed. Then the interviews and reccomentdations then she sends it thru 3 levels of upper management. Then it goes thru HR and their requirements.
So government will probably slogg on without this yahoos suggestions.
Nuke em til they glow then shoot em in the dark.
Lumbering Old Man
April 28, 2009 - 08:14 ET by GeneralAlDear Master Hiatt,
I am one of those "lumbering old people!" I strongly resent your implications that we are of little or no value! You little boys and girls may have attained a piece of paper from an "accredited" college or university but that is of little value until it is put into application. A commercial airline pilot attends several hours of classroom training but does not get to Captain a Boeing 747 until he has been trained under the watchful eye of a more experienced and seasoned "older" person!
You, young man, are an intellectual idealist who thinks because you were brain washed by some looney, leftist professor and given an A for following his lead, that you are qualified to pass judgement on those of us who have been watching the nation's store for the last fifty years. That is pure BULL!
You are of little or no value until you demonstrate some ability to grasp the situation at hand and come up with a reasonable solution. In turn, that solution has to work in reality as well as in theory. Us "older people" have been down that road already and have earned our stripes! We are not ready to turn it over to your crowd until you prove that you have what it takes. Judging from the arrogancy of your article, that will be a long time in coming!
Age discrimination
April 28, 2009 - 08:31 ET by 10ksnookerNo longer a cause celeb of the progressives.
Like the unions at newspapers, they are now just burdenson. Depends on whose ox is being gored.
To the generations before me
April 28, 2009 - 08:39 ET by dvdaughtryProverbs 20:29 (New Living Translation)
29 The glory of the young is their strength;
the gray hair of experience is the splendor of the old.
Althought I am not to far behind (turn 30 in Oct), thanks for what you do and have done. Not all of us young whipper-snappers think the same way.
(although we'd appreciate it if you would drive a little faster)
You trying to say Jesus Christ can't hit a curveball?
There is plenty of time
April 28, 2009 - 08:52 ET by ConservativeMissourianHiatt needs to rethink his position. I'm not sure that it is an "emergency." I think there is plenty of time to rationally think this one out. As was abovementioned, people are increasingly not retiring, and even as some are - it is nothing that needs to be rushed to figure out today. Additionally, I think that diversity in the workplace of experienced workers and new workers is what makes the environment more exciting, not just hiring tons of people under the age of 40 and only having their perspective..
That's funny
April 28, 2009 - 09:50 ET by TheCynicLet me quote someone from another forum I frequent, who recently talked about this very thing (spelling mistakes are the originals...)
Wrong headline
April 28, 2009 - 10:04 ET by zachlindOld and lumbering? This guy just described the mainstream media. With their circulation and advertising revenue falling faster than trees in an old-growth forest he must be doing an obit on his own industry and the editor used the wrong headline?
Washington post's B. S.
April 28, 2009 - 10:07 ET by jessieHJessie R. Hamby I am 55 years old & I can still out work, out play out smart, & probably kick Fred Hiatt's ass. Cut the strings, Fred. Don't be their puppet & you too can have a life...
Hiatt missed one of the
April 28, 2009 - 11:12 ET by BruzillaHiatt missed one of the biggest factors involving the graying out of employees, and that's downsizing. In the government, everytime a major division is downsized, the workforce gets reduced primarily by paygrade. For example, the GS-14s will get a choice of either losing their job, or taking a reduction in pay and a lower-level job... and they usually choose the later. This displaces the folks below them, but they also get a choice, so the GS-13 takes the job of a GS-12, and that GS-12 takes the job of a GS-11, etc. Eventually you get to the point where you have to layoff the 22-year old new guy, and he's gone because there's no jobs lower than his that he can take.
Under the government's system, the oldest folks get to stay around, the youngest-newest folks get layed off, and the workforce keeps getting older and older. This si going to result in an unwanted mass exodus of retirees in the future, and a huge gap in knowledge and experience as there's been no "bringing up" of younger employees over the years.
Hiatt is an idiot
April 28, 2009 - 11:25 ET by Ozark_SunshineI have received 2 patents since the age of 40 and have applied for 5 more, all in the telecom, electrical engineering and software fields. So much for this idiots ideas. I have watched over 20,000 people get laid off in the past 10 years, while I have maintained the skills to engineer, program, automate and build hardware and software tools while maintaining employment. It is no wonder that the WaPo is going bankrupt when they print lies. I look forward to the day this worthless rag is out of business and Hiatt is on the food and unemployment lines. Liberals who have lied, covered for and deceived on behalf of Obama and the Democratic Party deserve to be unemployed.
Moron. Everytime I hired a
April 28, 2009 - 16:56 ET by Clear thinkerMoron. Everytime I hired a young person, it would take them anywhere between a year to a year ans a half to get the hang of it. Whenever I hired an older person, they got the hang of it in less than 6 weeks.
Conservatives Are Racist Swine Flu Haters
Making Fun of AGW http://giovanniworld.wordpress.com/
I guess the WaPo folks
April 29, 2009 - 01:58 ET by RR GOPI guess the WaPo folks don't get out much...these teens and twenty-somethings are standing around checking their cell phones, gabbing, trying go get dates...pretty worthless, and they all just know they aren't getting paid what they're worth.
One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).