The National Council on Employment Policy found that there are small but substantial groups of older persons who are experiencing labor market problems--the working poor, the displaced unemployed, persons with health limitations, and groups of women who have been out of the labor force for large blocks of time. The problems of this generation, now in their 50s and 60s, have been given little attention, being overshadowed by the "baby-boomers" who follow them. There are several choices open to society on how to deal with the labor market problems of these workers: ignore the problem, increase growth in the economy, improve existing federal employment and training programs, or create a new employment program. The Council endorses the creation of a new employment program that it believes will improve the incomes and lives of these men and women while providing lessons that will be useful as the baby-boom generation reaches age 50 and over after the year 2000. The specific policies that the Council recommends are the following: (1) successful programs for older workers under the Job Training Partnership Act should be catalogued and disseminated to service delivery areas, and efforts should be made to increase the attractiveness of retraining programs to older workers; (2) the Senior Community Service Employment Program should be expanded to provide part-time work opportunities to disadvantaged older persons who need to supplement their incomes; and (3) a new "Older Americans Employment Program" should be established, perhaps on a demonstration basis, to provide full-time, year-round employment at the minimum wage to persons between the ages of 50 and 62. (KC)