Given the continued erosion in employer-sponsored retiree health benefits and defined benefit pension plans, boomers will likely remain at work longer than members of the previous generation. Lengthier careers will likely promote economic growth, increase government revenue, and improve individual financial security at older ages.

Workers' ability to delay retirement depends partly on the demands of their jobs. Matching occupational characteristics from the Occupational Information Network to Current Population Survey respondents, this study finds that 7% of American workers held highly physically demanding jobs in 2006 and 35% held highly cognitively demanding jobs. The share of the workforce in physically demanding jobs fell by about one-sixth between 1971 and 2006, while the share in cognitively demanding jobs increased by more than one-third. The decline in physically demanding occupations will likely improve employment prospects for older adults, but the growth in cognitive demands may limit options for some older workers.

The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, part of a consortium that includes parallel centers at the University of Michigan and the National Bureau of Economic Research, was established in 1998 through a grant from the Social Security Administration. The Center's mission is to produce first-class research and forge a strong link between the academic community and decision makers in the public and private sectors around an issue of critical importance to the nation's future. To achieve this mission, the Center sponsors a wide variety of research projects, transmits new findings to a broad audience, trains new scholars, and broadens access to valuable data sources.

; telephone: 202-261-5293). The authors thank Elizabeth Bell and Daniel Murphy for research assistance. Sheila Zedlewski of the Urban Institute, David Weaver of the Social Security Administration, and three anonymous reviewers provided helpful comments. The opinions and conclusions expressed in this report are solely those of the authors and do not represent the views of the Urban Institute, its board, or sponsors.

The Center for Retirement Research at Boston College, part of a consortium that includes parallel centers at the University of Michigan and the National Bureau of Economic Research, was established in 1998 through a grant from the Social Security Administration. The Center's mission is to produce first-class research and forge a strong link between the academic community and decision makers in the public and private sectors around an issue of critical importance to the nation's future. To achieve this mission, the Center sponsors a wide variety of research projects, transmits new findings to a broad audience, trains new scholars, and broadens access to valuable data sources.