A new CareerBuilder survey offers insight into the mature workforce, and how they are handling the recession.

Twenty-eight percent of workers age 55 and older who were laid off in the last 12 months found new jobs, the lowest of all age groups. This compares to 71 percent of those ages 25 to 34. A new study from CareerBuilder shows mature workers are expanding their job search to include entry-level positions, internships, relocation and other options to secure gainful employment. It seems clear that staffing firms can seize this opportunity to help the mature worker.

The majority (63 percent) of workers age 55 and older who were laid off in the last 12 months said they have applied for jobs below the level at which they were previously employed; 44 percent have been told by employers that they are overqualified.

In “Working Longer: The Solution to the Retirement Income Challenge,â€VbCrLf authors Steven Sass and Alicia Munnell of the Boston College Center for Retirement Research, explore the myths and realities of the older workforce. The good news for older workers is that they often have advantages over younger workers that employers recognize. Those advantages include higher productivity, better judgment, a stronger work ethic and better people skills. There’s also the belief in our society that people are healthier today in their older years than in previous generations. In other words, 65 is the new 55.

Some staffing firms are recognizing the advantages of this older cohort. Many technical firms hired older engineers for the Y2K scare, for example.