A study released by the Pew Research Center shows that more Americans over the age of 65 are heading back to work. The reason? They need the money. Twice as many people over 65 are still working than earlier generations of 35 years ago, Pew reported.
For decades, Baby Boomers lingered in the workforce, much to the complaints of younger generations wishing they’d retire and make room at the top of organizations.
Now, reasons older Americans say they are going back to work include changes in Social Security benefits, which forces people to work past age 65 in order to receive full benefits, lack of savings, increased inflation, and a shift away from defined benefit plans that reward people for retiring early.
In 2022, the average worker over the age of 65 was making about $22 an hour, compared to the average wage for those 25-64, which was $19 an hour. Since 2022, wage inflation has had an impact on those salaries, and so has inflation’s pressure on retired people’s savings.
In addition, there are more jobs for people who want to work, and older workers are viewed as having better work ethic than Generation X, Y, or Z.
