Pritchard, K and Whiting, R (2014) ‘Baby Boomers and the Lost Generation: On the discursive
construction of generations at work’ (accepted for Organization Studies SI ‘At a Critical Age: The
Social and Political Organization of Age and Ageing’)
Abstract:
Generations, and generational categories, offer a means of organising our understandings of age and
age-related issues. Particularly within practitioner-orientated debates, differences between
generations are highlighted as creating tensions which organisations must address. In contrast, we
offer a critical interrogation of generations and unpack the implications of particular constructions.
Specifically we examine the discursive construction of generational issues in UK online news about
age at work, focusing on baby boomers and the lost generation. We highlight the discursive work
involved in constructing each generation as entitled to work and how responsibility for employment
issues is variously positioned. These inter-related concerns develop into a debate about
consequences, as different versions of the future are constructed. In contrast to essentialised
understandings, our study shows how generations and generational categories are constructed and
organise understandings of age at work. We further highlight how the constructions of generational
differences and tensions become enrolled and legitimate age-related differences with regard to
work. Such insights are essential to further our understandings of age-related issues in
contemporary organising.