Employers with workers nearing retirement age should probably count on seeing them stick around longer than expected—and start planning on how to adapt to the emerging trend. New data indicates that a majority of the U.S. workforce now expects to continue working after they turn 65—including lots of employees already close to that age.
Those shifting views on people working after they reach their so-called golden years were detailed in a report by HireClix, a recruitment marketing services company. Its first State of Retirement and Today’s Workforce survey found that fully 80 percent of the 1,000 respondents aged 18 and older said they expect to continue working in some capacity after reaching 65. Gone, it appears, are previous conceptions of retirement spent playing golf or tennis, reading in a backyard hammock, or taking an endless series of trips. Now, only 15 percent of participants say they imagine their later years spent entirely on leisure activities.
That’s not the only way perceptions of retirement are changing—and morphing into something closer to an extended but modified career. Only 32 percent of survey participants said they plan to retire in any form once they reach 65, with many planning to continue full-time roles until downshifting later on. Meanwhile, 8 percent said they didn’t expect to decrease their current professional activities or workloads at any time later in life.
Among the 80 percent of participants who plan on continued work after age 65, about 16 percent envision extending their roles with current employers as consultants. Another 13 percent of respondents said they’ll likely shift to consulting for different companies, in part-time positions, or by taking on a gig job.
Why continue to labor during a period long associated with countless tropical vacations, aloha shirts, and ill-advised knee socks worn with sandals?
Finances, to begin with. Two-thirds of participants said they doubt their savings will cover their basic expenses in retirement, much less allow them to live their golden years up.
Those worries were especially high among the 62 percent of respondents planning to rely on Social Security for a large part of their income after 65. Indeed, with significant cuts to government entitlement programs as a major budgetary focus of President Donald Trump’s “big, beautiful bill” now working its way through Congress, 42 percent of employees surveyed said they didn’t think Social Security will even exist by the time they retire.
But money isn’t the only consideration behind the evolving expectations affecting retirement planning. Around 41 percent of participants said they fear they’ll be bored or feel unfulfilled if they stop working entirely after 65. Over a quarter, or 27 percent, specifically cited “loss of purpose” as a central concern in extending careers.
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New data indicates that a majority of the U.S. workforce now expects to continue working after they turn 65