Retirement has been defined by Feldman as “. . .the exit from an organizational position or career path of considerable duration, taken by individuals after middle age, and taken with the intention of reduced psychological commitment to work thereafter” (Feldman 1994, p. 285). In most western countries, retirement was invented in the late nineteenth century mainly to cover several needs related to the growing middle class, among these to be a tool to attract loyal workers but also to administer the termination of their employment in what was thought of as being a most rational way, that is, at a given age (Mykletun, 2015). The development of the pension systems continued up to the World War II postwar period in order to solve some of the poverty …show more content…
The previous notion of life was divided into three distinct periods: schooling, working years, and retirement (American Association of Retired Persons, 2002). Today majority of people will be continuing to work after they retire — often in new and different ways. Nearly half (47%) of today’s retirees in US say they either have worked or plan to work during their retirement. But an even greater percentage (72%) of pre-retirees age 50+ say they want to keep working after they retire, and in the near future it will become increasingly unusual for retirees not to work. This new phenomenon is driven by four forces
• Increasing life expectancy, which has produced a retirement that can last 20 years or more.
• Elimination of pensions for most workers, shifting the burden for funding retirement from employers to retirees.
• Recent economic uncertainty, which has been a wake-up call for many people that it is not financially sustainable to retire without some employment income.
• Re-visioning of later life, as new generations seek greater purpose, stimulation, social engagement, and fulfillment in retirement (Lynch,
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Retirement has historically been defined from an economic perspective (Gustman, Mitchell, and Steinmeier, 1995). For most people, retirement means the end of a full-time working life and the beginning of a different life, but without the identity, prestige and status (American Association of Retired Persons, 2003). Other studies argue that retirement should be seen as one of several transitions in the life-course of individuals that are embedded in historical, social, and personal contexts (Moen, 1996, 1998; Kim and Moen, 2001, 2002, Jaeger and Hom, 2004). However, the “nature” of retirement has been changing from being mainly an abrupt role transition from work to nonwork to gradually becoming deinstitutionalized, diversified, and individually tailored solutions including gradual reduction of workload, part-time employment, or post-retirement re-employment in the same or a different organization. These new ways of retirement may be conceived of as developmental processes where the individual gradually transfers the allocations of own efforts and resources from work to non-work activities. Such gradual transitions may be supported by public and organizational pension schemes and flexible human resource management practices, which are becoming increasingly popular in the USA, Canada, the UK, Australia, Japan, and northern Europe (Alcover et
The subsequent paragraphs contain a general analysis as well as a description of the legal questions and principles that were raised in the age discrimination case of Mckinney v. University of Guelph. This case raised the issue of whether a company or organization (in this case, a post secondary institution for education) should have jurisdiction over the age at which an individual must retire. Additionally, this document contains an analysis of the laws of mandatory retirement and how they are still currently in effect in countries such as China. Along with the aforementioned is a description of how mandatory retirement is imperative to population management,
The push for Congress to pass legislation protecting the rights of employees and their retirement was inevitable. Retirement plans are extremely important for all working individuals. Having funds to keep or exceed ones current standard of living and to enjoy one’s life beyond expectations after retire...
In America’s early days before the kickoff of industry, there was little need for retirement savings for a few key reasons. First of all, people were dying at a much earlier age; most people didn’t live past 38, whereas in 1900, 60 years of age was common for about 40 percent of the population and 15 percent experienced 80 years of life. Another reason for the irrelevance of social security in the 19th century and earlier was that people were usually living rurally on farms with extended families to take care of them. Furthermore, the Civil War also didn’t allow the government much economic room to consider providing a service such as social security. However, after the Civil War, pensions were a form of social security for civil war veterans that carried into their retirement. Unfortunately these pensions provided support for only a very small portion of the population; not even one percent of Americans received these pensions. Despite a much lower need for social security in the 18th ...
Despite the retirement income crisis, Social Security should be expanded, not reduced. In Arthur Delaney’s article on the Huffington Post, Senator Bernie Sanders stated, “With the middle class struggling and more people living in poverty than ever before, we cannot afford to make life even more difficult for seniors.” A push to adopt CPI-E, rather than a switch to a “chained” consumer price index that cuts retiree benefits, would m...
(Bendick, Brown & Wall, 1999). A new awareness of older workers has emerged as retiring
Retirees over the age of sixty two in the United States are estimated by an independent financial survey to be sitting on over one trillion dollars in total assets. That money mostly lies in financial institutions gathering interest while needy family members suffer impatiently waiting for the day when it will be their inheritance. But not all seniors are that callous, they give away their money to loved ones before they die. There is no better way for the elderly to show that they care. Those that do can enjoy the pleasure of watching their money being spent. It is a joy that they would never experience if they waited until their death.
“We like to tell ourselves that America is the land of opportunity, but the reality doesn’t match the rhetoric - and hasn’t for awhile” (Matthew O’Brien 1). In today’s economic situations, dreaming big may seem unaffordable, but not impossible. To achieve this goal many aspects should be analyzed to understand the American dream, weakened retirement, and smart investments. Megan Cottrell states that “graduate from college. Get married. Buy a house. Have kids. Put in a few decades of hard work, and then it’s time to retire by 65. That’s the American Dream, right?” (1).
Social security, since instituted in 1935, has kept many elderly people from running below the poverty line (Hosansky). In 2015, the Social Security Administration predicted that the funds would be depleted by 2034 (Max). This poses a serious threat to the living situation of future generations when they retire. Our elderly, by today’s standards, enjoy a comfortable lifestyle. They are able to retire and still make over one thousand dollars a month. Some people also have private pensions which allow them to live even more comfortably. But with social security funds running out, we must ask the inevitable question. Is it worth having social security anymore? Social security should be kept. One must never fully rely on social security. In addition
Lemon, B. W., Bengtson, V. L., & Peterson, J. A. (1972). An exploration of the activity theory of aging: Activity types and life satisfaction among in-movers to a retirement community. Journal of gerontology, 27(4), 511-523.
The existing U.S. population is over 315 million and rising. In the year 2030, 72 million Americans will be 65 or older, a 50 percent change in age demographics since the year 2000. The change is primarily due to the aging baby boomers, who were born at the end of World War II. Americans are living longer than ever befo...
The Australian government will increase the age pension from 65 to 70 by 2035(Australian Department of Human services [AU]). This announcement has lots of challenges for Australian people who are under 50; some people support the rise and find it beneficial for the future economical life. However, others are against the announcement as it has lots of concerns for their future plan, as they have to work longer to save more for their retirement. The current population ageing put pressure on the young workers who support retirees and their families, at the same time it affect the economic development. So the rise of pension has advantages and disadvantages on the future life standard of most Australians. It is beneficial decision from the government to provide a productive and qualified future life.
Active ageing does not stop when elderly people retire, as they can remain active through their families, peers and communities. Active ageing aims to allow elderly people to realise and bring awareness to their own psychological, physical and mental well-being. As the goal of active ageing is the autonomy and independence of elderly people (Alexandre, Cordeiro, & Ramos, 2009). Ageing is a continuing life cycle, it is an ongoing developmental event that brings about certain changes in one’s own psychological and physical state. It is a time in one's own life where an elderly individual reminisces and reflects, basks and lives on previous accomplishments and begins to finish his life cycle.
“A transition is a discrete life change or event within a trajectory, whereas a trajectory is a sequence of linked states within a conceptually defined range of behavior or experience” (Mitchell, 2003). A life changing event can be categorized as getting married, having a baby, etc. A trajectory event may occur during someone’s educational life, or perhaps during their career. Another life course principle is diversity of heterogeneity in structures or methods. “Matilda Riley’s (1987) research supported a model of age stratification-the different experiences of different cohorts-and so helped to overcome the fallacy of cohort centrism, the notion that cohorts share perspectives simply because they share a common age group” (Mitchell, 2003). Really, these groups are not similar gatherings of individuals, instead they are diverse in aspects such as influential extents like sex, social class, family structure, origin, and belief. Also, the capability to adjust to life course modification can differ with the resources intrinsic in these foundations in the procedure of financial or social wealth or social
Retirement is one of the most important crossroads we face in life. It involves a fundamental change in lifestyle, one that calls for a totally new outlook on how we approach each day. All our lives we have been conditioned to think in terms of saving for our retirement years. Society has created this mystique about this time in our lives when we magically transform into different people with different lives when really we are the same people with different day to day lives. According to Medina, (2012) planning for retirement isn’t a "walk in the park" because for many people, debts are high while income is low.
Allers, Kimberly Seals. "How Fit Are Your Finances?" Ebony 68.9 (2013): 93-97. Academic Search Complete. Web. 15 Nov. 2013. Bauer, Gabrielle, and John Southerst. "A promising retirement: your life, your way." Maclean's 18 Feb. 2013: 37+. Opposing Viewpoints in Context. Web. 15 Nov. 2013.