Older Americans Employment and Retirement

Abstract

This paper reviews the recent changes in labor force participation and withdrawal in the United States and examines some of possible reasons for the changes. Nowadays, many older Americans are extending their work lives and delaying retirement. This longer work life is accompanied by the emergence of new patterns of retirement, such as gradual retirement, phrased retirement, and unretirement. Generally, highly-educated, male workers and divorced urban women tend to continue working past traditional retirement age. Significant social, demographic, and economic changes have contributed to the trend toward continued labor force participation and later retirement. Greater life expectancy and improved health status enable older workers to extend their working lives. Some older Americans choose to work longer due to policy changes such as the elimination of mandatory retirement, work incentives provided in the Social Security, the shift to definedcontribution pension plans, and the erosion of retiree health insurance along with economic recessions. Finally, the paper discusses the potential health benefits linked with extended working lives and the challenges faced by older workers, especially those with socioeconomic disadvantages.

Education Inequalities in Health Among Older European Men and Women: The Role of Active Aging

“…Education has been found to be positively associated also to labor force participation at older ages (Kalwij, Kapteyn, & de Vos, 2016; Tang, Choi, & Goode, 2013). As far as the relationship between engagement in paid work and health is concerned, mixed evidence is found in the literature.…”

Baby boomers in the United States: Factors associated with working longer and delaying retirement

“…Concern over the ability to support an increasing proportion of retirees in the U.S. population has sparked widespread interest among individuals, policy makers, and society in promoting delayed retirement and longer working lives. The aging of the baby boomer cohort and the increased participation of older workers in the labor force have resulted in an aging workforce [Mermin et al, ; Tang et al, ]. The percentage of U.S. workers aged 55 years and older increased from 11.9% in 1994 to 21.7% in 2014, and is expected to increase to 24.8% by 2024 [Toossi, ].…”

“…Despite the Affordable Care Act, individuals without employer‐funded retiree health benefits are likely to postpone retirement in order to keep their insurance benefits [Nyce et al, ; Levy et al, ]. On the other hand, increasing age eligibility for full retirement benefits, increasing penalties for early retirement, and substantially increasing the delayed retirement credit (DRC) for Social Security benefits have been structured to encourage individuals to retire later in life [Hurd and Rohwedder, ; Tang et al, ].…”

Are there health benefits of being unionized in late career? A longitudinal approach using HRS

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