More seniors are remaining employed well after hitting retirement age of 65, a new ValuePenguin.com study has found, showing an increasing number of seniors aren’t ready to tap into that 401k just yet.
The labor force participation rate for the 65-74 age group alone has increased by nine percentage points, from 18% to 27%, in the past 20 years. For Americans over 75, the labor force participation rate has nearly doubled in that same timeframe.
The survey shows men are much more likely than women to work into traditional retirement years. In 2018, almost 1 in 3 (32%) of men between the ages of 65 and 74 were in the labor force. Yet only 23% of women of the same age were employed.
ValuePenguin.com’s analysis also found that occupations requiring very specific trade skills, such as embalmers and leather repairmen, employ the largest percentage of seniors, and that among the 100 largest cities in the country, some cities had a disproportionately large population of seniors in the workforce.
SEE ALSO:
- Why Seniors are Delaying Retirement? Only $133,108 in Savings
- 25 Cities with the Most Working Seniors
Among the 100 largest U.S. cities, Washington D.C., Bridgeport, Conn., Boston, Omaha, Neb., and Austin, Texas ranked as the top five cities with the largest proportion of seniors employed. Nearly a quarter of all residents age 65+ in these cities are still in the workforce.
Rounding out the top 10 are Dallas, Salt Lake City, Denver, Houston and San Francisco, all with at least 20% of those 65+ still working.
It should come as little surprise that traditionally well-known retirement communities have low populations of senior workers. Places like Augusta, Ga., Palm Bay, Fla., and Deltona, Fla., ranked lowest in ValuePenguin’s analysis, with just 1 in 10 residents 65+ employed.
More key findings
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Certain trade professions rely heavily on seniors Some industries heavily rely on seniors: Trade professions like embalmers, funeral attendants, repairmen, religious organizations and animal production rely heavily on working seniors—as much as 47% of their workforce is aged 65 or older, raising the question of the survival of these industries once these seniors retire.
- Why seniors are delaying retirement: With the increase in cost of living, seniors may be forced to work for longer in order to save enough for a comfortable retirement. Seniors also will spend as much as three times more than a 21-year-old for health insurance alone, which does not take into account medical bills or the costs associated with utilizing such care. But most importantly, seniors may be opting to work just to keep their minds sharp and increase their physical and mental mobility.
To identify where seniors are working and why they may be delaying retirement, ValuePenguin.com analysts looked at data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics 2018 Current Population Survey in conjunction with U.S. Census Bureau 2013-2017 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates (Population 65 years and over inthe United States), as well as ValuePenguin.com’s own research on insurance costs and the average amount of savings among seniors.
To view the full report, visit: https://www.valuepenguin.com/seniors-work-well-past-retirement-age
Veteran financial services industry journalist Brian Anderson joined 401(k) Specialist as Managing Editor in January 2019. He has led editorial content for a variety of well-known properties including Insurance Forums, Life Insurance Selling, National Underwriter Life & Health, and Senior Market Advisor. He has always maintained a focus on providing readers with timely, useful information intended to help them build their business.
