Five million in their 50s ready to work on past retirement age
MILLIONS of workers in their fifties plan to work on past their retirement age.
As many as five million people aged 50 and over will continue to work after they turn 65.
Of those, 300,000 have decided never to retire, according to a new report.
If half of the workers who turn 65 this year do not retire they will contribute £ 7billion to the economy annually.
About £ 5.4billion would come from part- time workers and a further £ 1.6billion from full- time staff.
A study by pensions firm Retirement Advantage found almost half of Britons want to continue to work, mainly part- time, after they reach retirement age.
Andrew Tully, of Retirement Advantage, said: “The idea of cliff- edge retirements are put firmly in the past as half the over- 50s have no plans to fully retire when the time comes.
Pressure
“This generation will continue to make a significant contribution to the economy in the future and employers will need to consider how best to adapt to this changing employment landscape.”
However he warned: “People clearly enjoy the social aspects as well as financial benefits of work but there is a cautionary tale in these statistics.
“A significant minority do not plan to ever stop working, with the number increasing over the last year.
“This may be perfectly reasonable for some people but it may also reflect a growing pressure to work to be able to pay the bills.”
Mr Tully also pointed out that plans to work beyond retirement have an impact on pension savings, which could see workers hit with a tax bill.
More than one in three workers who use new freedoms to access cash from their retirement fund continue to pay into a pension. Worryingly, 67 per cent were unaware of the money purchase annual allowance which severely restricts the amount you can continue to pay into a pension once benefits have been taken.
Mr Tully added: “People gradually easing into retirement by working part- time may also have taken some of their pension benefits and could find themselves falling foul of the tax rules.”
The study found financial worry was not the most popular reason why people considered working past the state pension age of 65.
At the top of the list – on 54 per cent – the people in the study said they simply liked to work.
This was followed by work providing a sense of purpose, 53 per cent, and to avoid boredom, for 52 per cent.
A further 42 per cent of the over- 50s said they wanted to ease into retirement gradually.
The need for extra money came fifth, at 41 per cent, with women more likely to be motivated by financial issues than men.