London, Sep 1 (IANS) Worried over their financial condition in post-retirement life, many people in Britain are compelled not to discontinue work even when they are well into their mid-60s, a study has found.
Fears of poverty in old age mean almost four out of five of Britain’s over-60s plan to keep on working beyond the age of 65, the Daily Express reported.
A quarter have already made inquiries from employers about staying on and another 26 percent are planning to do so.
The survey for pension company MetLife, UK, has found that 79 percent either want or need to keep earning, with 56 percent saying they enjoy working.
But only 28 percent of those want to stay on in their present job full-time, another 40 percent would like to ease off a bit by working part-time and the remaining 11 percent plan to move to a different job.
Half of the women questioned in the survey said they could not afford to stop working, compared with 42 percent of the men.
The survey comes exactly a month before new legislation scraps the right of employers to fire people once they reach 65.
MetLife’s managing director Dominic Grinstead, said: ‘Many are keen to carry on working, but many have to keep on working.’
‘They need retirement income solutions which can enable them to maximise income while retaining flexibility. The whole concept of retirement is changing rapidly and that is reflected in the number of people aged 60 and over who are carrying on working.’
‘The past decade has seen a doubling of the number of over-65s who work, and clearly the numbers will continue to increase as the abolition of the default retirement age takes effect,’ he said.
