Are you planning on working in retirement?

[CTyankee]

You probably won't, according to this NYT article: When Retirement Comes Early

In her years as a probation officer north of Dallas, Patricia Lowell reckoned that she would work until age 65, confident that she could then retire halfway comfortably on her pension and Social Security. After retiring, she thought, she would pick up some extra spending money by working part-time retail jobs during the holiday season.

In that way, Ms. Lowell was like the three out of four Americans who say they plan to continue working after they retire from their main job.

But for Ms. Lowell, things did not turn out as planned. At age 58, she quit her job as a probation officer for Grayson County in order to care for her mother, who had cancer, diabetes and congestive heart failure. Her decision to leave her job of 23 years, she said, was made possible only by Texas’ then-recent decision to provide health insurance to longtime probation officers who retire before they qualify for Medicare at age 65.

“I wanted to continue working, but then this opportunity came up allowing me to retire and take care of my mother,” Ms. Lowell said. “It all came together very nicely.” She retired in late 2004, spending dozens of hours each week caring for her mother, who died in 2010 at age 92.

full article here: http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/13/business/retirementspecial/the-gray-jobs-enigma.html?ref=retirementspecial

[yeoman6987]

1. I plan on going to Florida

I have a home close to the Villages and will retire when I am 62 after 42 years of working. Way long enough. I will not collect SS until around 67-70 and I also will just live on two pensions which will be fine for my wife and I. We will basically travel to visit kids and grandkids and go on a cruise at least yearly. I am looking into that around the World cruise which the one I found is about 110 days which is ok but not enough when you will be retired....lol.

[CTyankee]

19. I am traveling too but my husband has had a couple of back surgeries so I've had to be

his caregiver, altho he is much better now. But I still can't be away for more than 10 days because of his mobility issues.

I hope you will be able to take that 110 day cruise...which company offers it? I have seen some but they are hugely expensive...

[SheilaT]

2. I plan of leaving my current job, which is only part time

but comes with benefits, next month. I'm 65 so I'll be on Medicare but will not take SS for several more years, probably at 70. I am fortunate enough to be able to afford to do so.

I do plan to do temp and seasonal work for the next few years. I don't really need to, but I get nervous about having enough money, or making extra to do some more travelling.

[PowerToThePeople]

3. What retirement? eom

[CTyankee]

10. I used to think that, too. And so many co-workers said the same thing: "I'll never be able

to retire."

But I found myself up against age discrimination, responsibility for my frail, elderly mother and disabled brother and had to "retire." I had lined up a part time job and that with my SS was enough. Boy, was that a relief.

My brother then died very suddenly and I flew to Texas every 6 weeks to see my mother in her assisted living home and take care of her affairs. She passed away 10 months later and I was sole survivor of her estate (which I never thought would be the case). I then had a complication from an elective surgery and was laid up for 6 months so at that point no more job for me.

A lot of what this article talked about was my experience, too. I see now how I should probably have been thinking of some realities, such as my increasingly frail mother and my brother's stroke (I arranged for his nursing home care). It was an eye opener...

[prairierose]

11. Exactly, every time I see a question like this....

I wonder how many people of my generation have retirement funds if they got stuck with a 401k or , like me, work for small businesses that do not offer benefits.

[CTyankee]

18. Or work for non-profits all their lives, as I did, where pensions were scarce as hens teeth...

[RebelOne]

4. I worked full-time until at 71 I was laid off.

I am 75 now and would still be working, but at my age no one is going to hire me, and I sure as hell do not want to be a Walmart greeter.

[TeeYiYi]

38. Why not?...

(Just kidding.)

TYY

[LongTomH]

5. I had planned to.....but, I was downsized. Then, as a contractor, my contract wasn't renewed.

My career was in computer programming. I was laid off from my company during a downsizing in 2005. In 2008, I got a chance to go back to my old company as a contractor......no benefits, no paid time off. In January 2010, I was back on the street; fortunately, I was only a year away from being able to collect full Social Security.

Actually, I was relatively lucky; most IT people are kicked out mid-career in their 40s or 50s. Legacy (mainframe) coders like myself are sometimes able to hang on longer.

[sinkingfeeling]

7. Hi, fellow mainframer. I'm going to be 66 in July and am still employed full

time as a system programmer. I retired from IBM in 2002 with full 'old style' pension. I like my job and intend to stay at it for a while. Then I'm packing up and moving to Ireland and never coming back to the USA.

[LongTomH]

8. More power to you, Friend, and good luck!

I wish I had a full pension. Our #!@*$! India-born CEO froze pensions for 'grandfathered' employees and substituted a 401K for younger employees, all while forcing us to take pay cuts and 'reducing headcount.'

[crazylikafox]

17. LOL. You must work for Verizon.

[CTyankee]

13. I found out that my boss was planning on getting rid of all the women on the staff who were

over the age of 60 since their jobs could be filled by younger people at a much reduced salary. One by one we found ourselves in another world...what we once did that was great didn't count for much. I consulted a labor lawyer and he confirmed these tactics but I declined to sue. One woman threatened to and got a nice payout. I had decided to just call it a day. The deck was stacked against us.

[cherokeeprogressive]

6. Nnnnnnope.

[Orrex]

9. Retirement. Oh, how you kid.

That's a funny one.

[CTyankee]

14. that's what you think. Don't be too sure...

I know from experience about having to make "other" plans when I found myself up against age discrimination and family responsibilities. These real life stories sounded eerily familiar to me...(sigh)...

[Orrex]

21. Family responsibilities are always foremost in my mind

I know very well that 99% of the circumstances of one's life are entirely beyond the individual's control.
If I do eventually retire, it won't be by choice.

[CTyankee]

22. as the labor lawyer told me: "One day you're doing great and the next day you can't tie

your shoes." That was true because I found that they attacked my strengths and that that was a common tactic to get rid of older workers...it is shameful the way aging workers are treated in the workplace these days...it is some consolation when you realize that the bosses who treated you that way will eventually find themselves in similar circumstances as they age out...I'm sure they are thinking "I'm different." Hah.

[RobinA]

12. My PLAN

subject to the whims of the state budgetary process and the job market, are to work to late 60's (my retirement age is 67 yrs and some months), retire with SS and pension, and then work in the pastry shop at Wegman's. I want to learn how to bake the hard stuff. I am a SW/therapist and can work at that in some form until I drop dead of lose my mind. However, I'm ready for something concrete where I can see the results of my efforts. I started in retail and will probably end in retail.

[CTyankee]

15. That sounds sensible. Your having a pension is great. I had no such thing. If it weren't for

inheriting some money from my mother, I don't know what I would have done...

[11 Bravo]

16. I already am doing so. I retired after 30+ years as a public school teacher ...

and now substitute teach almost every day. I get to continue doing what I love (working with kids), but am able to avoid most of the bullshit that full-time teachers are burdened with every day.

[CTyankee]

20. my s.i.l. had similar good fortune as a retired teacher up in New York. Her pension was

very comfortable for her. She remarried but he died and she eventually downsized and unfortunately died of liver cirrhosis at age 72. It was incredible how much I grieved over her death...she meant so much to me and to every one...

[DebJ]

58. Same for my husband, but he retired three years early...ouch on the finances...

the penny-pinched district has been pursuing a program of active harassment to get teachers to leave, with things so ridiculous
you just can't imagine. They have already laid off over half the teachers, and the other half all have 10 years and more of service,
many have 20-25. White males seem to be especially targeted (and that's per our female teacher friends). Just as this started, my husband was diagnosed with CKD and his health situation got very scary. So he retired early...but we didn't try for disability because he is not yet on dialysis, and the doctors told us 90% of all claims are being turned down the first time now, and 2/3 after appeal, and we were just too blown away by all that was going on to even think straight. So he subs now and again and we try to hang on having lost $1000 a month in planned pension and social security benefits, while paying out an extra $1500 a month for health insurance.

Some of the things the district does is that they will not remove a child from a classroom no matter the behavior; teachers are being physically assaulted more and more and verbally assaulted every day. One teacher of 15 years, well loved by students, was given multiple death threats by a 7th grader with one of those ankle-monitoring bracelets, who refuses to be quiet or sit down or do anything except disrupt the class every day. Nothing was done about the death threat; not even a parental call. Any actions taken now must be done by the teacher calling the police; the district will not back up anyone. This teaches the students that the 'teacher' is the problem, see...its not a matter of school policy, it's the teacher.

One friend of ours in his late 30s collapsed in his classroom and was kept in the hospital for a week because of the stress. He had been very happy, and very well loved by students. I taught there for one year, and I had his students the year after he had them, and all they could do was talk about how cool and wonderful and interesting he was. Now, they are going to kill him. He has a wife and two kids, a mortgage and an old clunker car, like most of the teachers.

They used to give teachers a gift when they retired, and a thank you. Now it is just a FU get out just before you are able to get your full retirement. It is really sickening to see this happening to two or three teachers, then two or three more, etc. etc.

Sorry I just had to rant. The unecessary suffering and anguish and disrespect is such a tragedy for all of these people and their families. But the even bigger tragedy is to come, as all of these students know THEY control the school, and one day, they will be out of school and on the streets full time.

[Rex]

23. I plan on working until I die.

Or cannot work anymore due to whatever happens. No way I will ever be able to retire.

[CTyankee]

25. have you thought about what you might want to do?

I had some ideas, such as getting trained as a Literacy Volunteer in ESOL and getting enough experience to where I could look for companies who would pay me to conduct ESOL classes for their employees. Great idea but it turns out there is no such need. LV does it for free in many workplaces so they get expertise from volunteer workers, not paid ones.

[Rex]

29. I am in the IT field...which is now just a throw away job.

Actually, I am going to get a CDL-C here in the next few weeks. Not changing careers, but in this area there is a desperate need for drivers and the pay is great.

[Tikki]

24. Work,yes…shortly after retirement our adult son delivered his baby son to our...

front door: please help me raise him, the mom left. Our son, thankfully had a job, asked
us to help all workdays.

That meant potty training and parent's clubs and trips to the zoo and all. A pleasure because
we are his grandparents, but nearly a full time responsibility. Exhausting at 60 y.o.

Then to make a better life for he and his son, our son bought a house. It needed some repairs and updating.
So my Mister remodeled the home extensively.

Then, time to update our properties. So far my hubby has renovated two bathrooms, taken them
down to the floor joists and all new wiring, totally rebuilt and, also, a kitchen renovation...same scenario
as the bathrooms, total rebuild.

We still have one more kitchen and one more bathroom to go.

So he has been working, yes indeed.

The way we see it; California property in this area really doesn't lose value. Upgrades here will make all of us money
in the long or short run.

And most of all, the time we have put into helping our son create a stable and loving family of his own…
that will reap rewards, the real rewards, for all of us.


The Tikkis

[CTyankee]

26. Sounds like you made good plans...

We had house renovations done while hubby and I were still working full time...I called it my 5 year plan. We got practically all of it done exactly 1 1/2 years before I was forced to retire. We are in a good area for home prices as well so it makes sense to get the important stuff done because we have an older house...it has charm but buyers expect nice kitchens and bathrooms...

[Tikki]

31. I totally respect you…it must have been doubly hard to work all day and then...

come home and do all that physical work and I bet you worked through many weekends, too.

It is worth it and because of our ages, this will be our last hurrah with the houses.
We own rentals, also, and they are getting our attention.

I think retirement is just a word, not necessarily a deed.


Tikki

[CTyankee]

32. well, we had to hire a contractor but luckily we had the money from saving all our

tax refund $$ over several years, also getting a new mortgage and borrowing just a bit more. It will still be a big plus for us when we sell...

[Hoyt]

27. Will work as long as I have a choice to pick up some extra money, even if minimum wage.

Maybe just part-time at some point.

[CTyankee]

28. I hope you do...

[bigwillq]

30. I'll be dead before I can retire.

So, no, I'm not planning on working in retirement.

[CTyankee]

34. Oh, I hope that won't be the case...

is your health good enough to do it, though? I ask that because if you have a progressive health issue you could be sidelined even tho mentally you are fully capable. I remember one dear lady who wasn't that old but she had a progressively worsening condition that she tried valiantly to overcome. Her boss kept her on but she just got worse and worse and finally told him "Look, you need somebody who is fully able to work and I'm clearly not." so she quit. He was such a kind boss...he got canned eventually for being a good guy and it was sad...

[bigwillq]

37. I'm fine. Just went for a checkup last week.

My point was, I'll probably never be able to save enough for retirement and I'll probably have to work until I die.
It's still tough economic conditions out here for most of us, and I don't really see that changing anytime soon.

[CTyankee]

39. well, that was the other point made in the article. You still face obstacles as I have recounted

here. The deck is stacked against the aging worker in more ways than one and one fine day you are "no longer" the asset you were when they had you for less money...once you become that worker that is making a pretty good salary, you get into their gun sights. I was doing so well and had so many years experience I thought I could pick and choose when to retire. Plus, I was feeling pretty good. That changed when I faced the clear intent to get rid of me. I kept going to my doctor with all these stress related health issues and finally he took a blood pressure reading that was NOT good and he said to me: "Have you thought about leaving this job? It seems so stressful to you from what you have been coming here and telling me." That really got me to thinking and to this day I thank him for telling me what I needed to hear...

[GoCubsGo]

33. I'm having a hard time even working before retirement.

It's fucking ridiculous.

[CTyankee]

35. it gets harder as you age, that's for sure...

[Curmudgeoness]

53. A truer statement cannot be made.

These days, I work all day and want to take a nap when I get home, but don't dare or I will not be able to go to sleep at night. But I am just drained now.

I am starting to think about an early retirement and would do it tomorrow IF we had universal health care. I think that the one expense that is too high to allow me to retire is health insurance and the high deductibles every year if I have any issues.

[GoCubsGo]

55. I'm actually finding impossible to find work.

I'd say I've been forced into retirement by getting laid off in middle age, but I'm still too young to even touch what little retirement I have. I'm pretty fucked at this point. And, since the useless heap of shit that is my governor refuses to set up any health care exchange or expand Medicaid, health insurance is out of the question. I guess I'm on the "die quickly" plan.

[Curmudgeoness]

57. That situation really sucks.

I have worried for several years about getting laid off or my company closing the doors, and I know that finding something else would be next to impossible in my 50's, and now at 60. But if I was too young, I wouldn't give up finding something....although learning a totally new job might put me over the edge mentally, and I already stand very close to the edge.

[kelly1mm]

36. My wife and I are retiring early at the end of the school year (june 2014). Have not decided

if I will keep my 5 hour per week, court house clinic job. Nobody else seems to want it as it does not pay well for attorney work and the Judges have asked me to stay on. The only problem is it is 105 miles from our retirement home. I may still do it as it a needed service. Wife does NOT want to work, at least for a while.

[Nika]

40. I am working well under my capabilities just to keep an income in.

A co-worker was fascinated with some of the things I have done in life and did this you tube posted video of me at work that was part of a class project she did. I never thought I would have a job like this:

[enough]

47. Thanks for posting this Nika. (nt)

[Nika]

70. Glad you liked it. The woman who made this works there too.

[DebJ]

60. Kudos to you. Restaurant work can be very hard on the joints.

I did it in my late 30s-40s as a manager, working 12 hour shifts where you work 11-11 one day, 5-5 another, never have two days off in a row, rare holidays off, maybe 7 weekends a year. Then I worked an hourly job while completing my BS in Education, graduating summa cum laude just as Pennyslvania laid off 20,000 teachers....when the forecast had been that there would be a lot of retirements at that time and a lot of openings. None at all now. After over a decade of hard brick floors, my knees and ankles and hips can't take it anymore. After just a four hour shift, I walk like I am 95 for five or six hours, so I had to stop.

I hope you are blessed with a promotion soon.

[Nika]

69. I am taking the Culinary Arts program at Lane Community College

which will earn me a promotion after the first year of that program. I like the people and they promote from within the establishment.

They like me and agree with me that one cannot wash dishes forever. I have other restaurant experience and by the time I'm ready for retirement I should be - could be a sous-chef here. WE shall see. I just want financial stability at this point. My sights are lower then they used to be too,

[DebJ]

71. Awesome! I'm always a fan of creative people.

I have almost zero creativity myself and that leaves me literally in awe.

[oldhippie]

41. I still do a little consulting in retirement ....

Does that count? Mostly about solar energy systems and do it to stay abreast of the field. My per hour fee is pretty hefty, but I don't spend all that many hours at it per year, at least the last couple of years. Just enough to keep my wine cellar stocked and feed a couple other hobbies.

[madville]

42. I would if I was bored

If things keep going along I should have two separate pensions and a decent monthly retirement annuity payout that all start when I'm between 57-58 years old. Probably will take SS early at 62 as well and should still have some rental income from a couple of homes I own.

I would work if I was bored and for the social aspect of it, have a reason to get out of the house, etc.

The flip side of all that is I haven't had much of a social life or any successful relationships the last 20 years, I've worked at least two concurrent jobs that entire time.

[bluestate10]

43. Yes. I like working. nt

[Jazzgirl]

44. After 40 years tomorrow is my last day at work.

I am beyond excited. I do have a small pension but also have a healthy IRA and railroad retirement. If i work it will be at my favorite kitchen store part time to pay for stuff I want. Otherwise I plan to enjoy the rest of my life doing what I want on my schedule.

[Tom Ripley]

81. Great news... congratulations!

Have a good time

[Ex Lurker]

45. Self employed and I enjoy what I'm doing

As long as my health holds and I stay interested, I plan to keep on going.

[Throd]

49. Same here. I hope it's because I want to and not that I have to.

[WhaTHellsgoingonhere]

46. when that time comes...

...I'm simply going to use up all my resources. I've never married and don't have children.

[badtoworse]

48. I might. I'm thinking of retiring this summer and I already have an offer to consult if I do.

An old boss of mine has started a new venture and wants me work for him on a consulting basis. Working for him was always fun and what he's got going sounds really interesting.

[riderinthestorm]

50. Yes. Self employed so will be working for as long and as much as I choose nt

[FreeJoe]

51. I plan to retire in my late 50s and do freelance work

I plan to retire around 58 on a combination of social security, pension, 401k, IRAs, and savings. In retirement, I will do some freelance photography and videography, but it shouldn't be economically important to me.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

52. I retired on my 55th birthday....and started living.

Work is highly overrated as a pastime.

[2naSalit]

54. Retire?

At the rate I'm going, I'll still be working full time ten years after I'm dead.

[El Supremo]

56. Only volunteer work to help others.

I'm 63 and almost there.

[madinmaryland]

63. I'm probably working until at least 70.

BTW, Have you seen a baseball game in Cincy or Dayton?

[El Supremo]

64. What state are they in?

Anywhere near California or Texas?

[yourout]

59. I will probably be working until they plant me in the ground.

Not much choice.

[shanti]

61. I retired about a month after I turned 55 three years ago

with a state pension after 21 years. it's not a lot, but I made sure all my bills were paid down before I retired, so I do ok. HOWEVER, about a year after retirement, i had to replace my roof AND my heat pump/condenser, one after the other, which really cut into my savings, which wasn't a lot. i really felt shafted! i'm planning to take SS at 62 which will give me a bit more money to save and do fun things with.

one thing i didn't really take into consideration was the social isolation being retired. i'm single, a loner, and not a social person naturally, so without work as an outlet, sometimes it sucks.

one more thing...i have a sister a year younger. she is married and spends money much more freely than i do. she has a 401k but no pension, and doesn't feel she will ever retire. we both made roughly the same when i was working. our relationship was doing ok until i retired. it seems like she became very jealous of my retired status, and our relationship has gone downhill since.

[idendoit]

62. I was lucky enough to start a new full time career at 60.

It's work I love. I didn't need to get more education. And it pays well.

[dem in texas]

67. I am 74 and I like to work

I retired from job as a financial software consultant at age 65. Before I retired, I went to the local community college and took classes on photoshop and web design. I now have two web sites and also sell on Ebay. Our house is paid for. My husband gets military retirement and SS, I only get SS. We could get buy very well on just that, but we are helping my daughter who lost her job and helping a grandchild with college tuition. That said, I like to work and even if I wasn't helping the kids, I would be working, same for my husband. We stay busy and that is fun.

[Marrah_G]

68. What is this retirement you speak of?

I'll work until I die. I have no retirement savings, 401k or a pension.

[CTyankee]

72. As the article points out and I point to my own experience, this just doesn't happen for most of us.

You can get sick and unable to continue at your job, you can be the victim of age discrimination and "eased" out, or you can have family responsibilities that force you to quit.

For years, we were told to save our money in 401(k) accounts and we could retire comfortably and this was a crock. For one thing, people like me just weren't making enough money to make substantial contributions to the fund and pay our bills. You end up limping along with 50 bucks deducted every week from your pay and then the recession hits and you are laid off and too old to get hired because you have old skills and they want younger, cheaper workers. It's a vicious circle...

[mmonk]

73. What's retirement? Replacing tires?

[whatthehey]

74. not just no but hell no

When I retire, which is not that far in the future, the alarm clock goes to the charity shop that day along with all but one button down shirt and dress pants saved for the occasional semi-formal event I might get roped into. I'll be downsizing into a condo with no outside maintenance shortly before then. About the only thing I might do on anybody else's schedule at all is take a college class or two for fun.

[LWolf]

75. What retirement?

I expect that I will someday keel over right in the classroom, as I'll never be able to afford to retire.

[pragmatic_dem]

76. What is this word retirement? It sounds subversive. nt

[mn9driver]

77. Not an option.

I'll be on the work-til-you-die plan.

[LuvNewcastle]

78. I'm 44 now, so it all depends on how well I do in the next 20 years.

I suspect that I'll have to do something, at least until I get too sick to work. I'm thinking that Social Security and a part-time job would give me plenty to live on -- I lead a rather simple life. This is all assuming that I live to retirement age which, due to several factors, might not happen. It doesn't matter much to me one way or the other. We'll just see how things pan out, and I'll take things as they come.

[warrior1]

79. I'm retired after a long 36 plus years of working

I've been working on my home and relaxing.

To hell with working any more.

[Tom Ripley]

80. If by "planning on" you mean "resigned to", the answer is yes

Sadly enough