The Enterprises TV Show Relays Retirement Trends for Today

Gone are the days when workers who have reached retirement age leave the workforce for a life of leisure. A new survey reveals that more retirees take some other form of work, after leaving

a steady job. The Enterprises TV show relays the retirement trends.

Boston College and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics studied patterns of older workers who retired from 1992 to 2010. They looked at roughly 20,000 American aged 50 and up. Together with critera from the Health and Retirement Survey (HRS) conducted by the University of Michigan, they found some telling results:

There were four main ways older workers took retirement:

• Traditional - one-time, full retirement from the workforce
• Bridge - worker left full-time job and starts a part-time job or anoter full-time job
• Phased - worker reduces their workload and schedule
• 'Unretirement" - worker leaves employment for about two or more years but  returns to work after that

The study also found that a little more than half of those studied (both men and women) left a full-time career for a bridge job.
Thirteen percent of both sexes were "unretired" during the study period.
A little more than 10 percent of both sexes had a phased retirement.
Few than one-fourth took a tradtional retirement.

Naturally, there are differences in retirement patterns based on age and generations. Early boomers were more likely than their predecessors to bridge employment with full-time work. They were also more likley to leave a full-time career involuntarily due to layoff, health reasons or family care.  These trends pretty much explain how American workers think of retirement and what they need and want from their retirement.

Enterprises TV suggests considering these factors before deciding to retire: volatility of the stock market and its affect on retirement plans, interest rates on homes and vehicles and how the economy affects them, length of service to current long-term employer, needs and wants from a life after work.  People planning to retire soon or within a decade might want to consider bridge employment. A change in career direction is another consideration. These so-called "second careers" could be the golden key to living the Golden Years with some ease.