It seems many Australians aren’t planning for their official retirement age to shrug off the daily grind, and bad bosses aren’t helping.
A study published in the Journal of Organizational Behaviour has found a subset of Australian workers – dubbed the ‘queue jumpers’ – who are planning to retire well before retirement age, often prompted by wanting to get the best out of life and feeling poorly supported at work.
The study used data from surveying almost 500 workers aged 50 and over to ascertain why so many were considering retirement.
Traditionally, it was thought mostly workers in poor health sped up their approach to retirement, but the study also found many healthy workers were also accelerating their plans.
It found that older workers had a rising perception of time running out but their good health allowed for a choice between remaining in work or active retirement.
Low manager support
“The findings show that over a two-year period, in contrast to other older workers whose retirement intention remains stable, individuals in consistently good health but with low manager support demonstrate a growth in intention to retire,” the report found.
The report said the ‘queue jumpers’ were speeding up their retirement process relative to other older workers.
“This novel result helps explain recent trends. Even though life expectancy has increased in the last decades, retirement age has declined,” the report stated.
“Many aspects of the meaning of work may have paled for them when the perception of time running out motivated them to consider what else life has to offer.”
Research co-author Professor Carol Kulik, from the University of South Australia, says if more people healthy older people are leaving work earlier than previous generations, that may have consequences for employers.
“Retirement intentions are no longer linked to a fixed age, when pensions become available,” Prof. Kulik says.
“Changes in wealth and income, longer life spans and a desire among active older adults to make the best of their life before poor health sets in, are all reasons why people might choose retirement over work.
“In the past, health, wealth, workplace-related factors, and family variables were major predictors of retirement, but there is a new motivation that hasn’t been previously considered – the passage of time.
Reassessing priorities
“Growing awareness that life is finite sets in at around 50 years when people start to reassess their priorities.
“They become less concerned with future work goals and more interested in the present. Relationships with family and friends also become more important.”
The study found that as well as people wanting to enjoy their retirement while their health was still good, many were also motivated by unsupportive workplaces.
It was found that employers who do not value employees or discriminate against them risk losing experienced, valuable productive workers.
It also recommended rethinking the workplace environment to keep valuable workers and ‘pause’ their retirement plans.
“Hybrid office and working from home arrangements often suit older employees as they are removed from onsite discrimination that is prevalent in many workplaces,” Prof. Kulik says.
“This also gives them a bridge into retirement, allowing them to reduce their hours but continue working.”
A separate study by the Australian Human Rights Commission found more than one in four (27 per cent) of working Australians aged 50 years or older had experienced some form of age discrimination in the workforce.
The likelihood of discrimination increased as the workers’ age increased.
Are you considering early retirement? Does this reasoning resonate with you? Why not share your experience in the comments section below?
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