Opinion Janine Starks

known as the ‘‘underutilisation rate’’. This runs at 9% and includes people who would like more hours, or who are seeking employment now or fairly soon. It should be reworked into a more truthful unemployment rate.

Enticing this highly productive age group back into the workforce is what’s being discussed in the UK.

One industry noticing a big uptick in over 50s is hospitality.

Caterer.com says ‘‘hospitality is seeing the most dramatic ever transformation to its workforce’’, noting that employers had seen a surge in this demographic.

Despite knowing the complexities of financial decision-making, the ‘‘silver exodus’’ trend still bothers me.

‘‘Lifestyle’’ may have come under the pandemic microscope, but retirement planning is a telescope out to age 90. That’s 35 to 40 years if you’re 50-something.

Mortgages are gone, kids are going or gone. Savings can be vast. Most couples should be living off one salary and saving a salary at this stage of their lives.

Have you calculated the impact of financial inactivity? Let’s punch out some numbers to make us think.

If you can get a job paying $68,000 a year, it’s $52,000 after tax, or $1000 a week in savings.

Saving $1000 a week for 15 years with market returns of 7% (after fees and tax) will give a lump sum of $1.35 million. With an 8% return, this increases to $1.46m. Saving $1000 a week for 10 years gives $742,800. Saving $1000 a week for 5 years gives $309,100. Given we’re sitting at market lows, working now and investing could be one of the most lucrative financial decisions of your life.

If you’re 50 to 65 years old, the opportunity cost of inactivity is high when viewed through this telescope.