Last month the first baby--boomers turned 60．The enormous generation born between 1946 and 1964 is heading towards retirement．The coming “demographic cliff”（人口調(diào)查）will see vast numbers of skilled workers disappear from the labor force．

The workforce is ageing across the rich world．Within the EU the number of workers aged between 50 and 64 will increase by 25% over the next two decades，while those aged 20-29will decrease by 20%．

Given that most societies have a tendency to retirement at around 65，companies have a problem of knowledge management，of making sure that the boomers do not leave before they have handed over their expertise along with the office keys and their e-mail address．

If you look hard enough，you can find companies that have begun to adapt the workplace to older workers．The tools they use to achieve arc flexible working，telecommuting，and so forth．Some companies spend “a lot of time” on the ergonomics（人類工程學(xué)）of its factories，making jobs there less tiring．

Likewise，for more than a decade，Toyota，has been unusually keen to employ older workers．IBM uses its alumni network to recruit retired people for particular projects．But such examples are unusual．A survey in America last month by Ernst ＆Young found that “although America foresees a significant workforce shortage as boomers retire，it is not dealing with the issue（議題）．”

Why are firms not working harder to keep old employees? Mostly they are not hanging on to older workers the only way to cope with a failing supply of labor．The participation of developing countries in the world economy has increased the overall supply--whatever the local effect of demographics（人口統(tǒng)計(jì)）in the rich countries．

1．According to the passage，the most serious consequence of baby--boomers approaching retirement would be ________．

A．a(chǎn) decrease in the number of 20 to29 year-olds

B．a(chǎn) loss of knowledge and experience to many companies

C．a(chǎn) continuous increase in the number of 50 to 64 year-olds

D．its influence on the developed world whose workforce is ageing

2．The following are all the measures that companies have adopted to cope with the ageing workforce EXCEPT ________．

A．encouraging former employees to work overseas

B．using alumni networks to hire retired former employees

C．offering more convenience in working hours to older workers

D．making places of work accommodate the needs of older workers

3．In the author's opinion American firms are not doing anything to deal with the issue of the ageing workforce mainly because ________．

A．they have other options to consider

B．they are unwilling to hire older workers

C．they are not sure of what they should do

D．they have not been aware of the problem

4．We can infer from the passage that ________．

A．people in most societies will retire at 65

B．Toyota has been the most active in taking on older workers

C．some companies are trying to make work less tiring for older workers

D．people's joining from the developing world has an effect on the rich world

5．What's the best title of the passage?

A．Old workers in the US are ageing

B．The first baby-boomers are retiring

C．A worldwide shortage of skilled labor

D．The problems with the companies in the EU

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