You read a lot these days about the so-called Great Resignation, as companies grapple with employees leaving their jobs at abnormally high rates, mainly those in their prime working years. This trend, however, does not necessarily apply to older employees, according to a survey released Monday by the Nationwide Retirement Institute (NRI).
The survey found that a quarter of participants in employer-sponsored retirement plans who are 45 or older have pushed back their retirement, or resigned themselves to not retiring at all, because of the pandemic. Worse, 30 percent of participants 65 and older say the same thing.
The NRI survey found that plan participants looking to delay retirement expect to work for at least three years later, on average, than they had had thought they would before the pandemic.
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As a result, 48 percent of these employees report feeling frustrated, 42 percent are worried, 38 percent are sad, and 17 percent report feeling hopeless.
Not surprisingly, these emotions have consequences for their work lives. Forty-eight percent say delayed retirement has negatively affected their mental health. Thirty-nine percent indicated that it has damaged their morale at work, and 23 percent reported that they are less productive.
The survey was conducted over the summer by Edelman Data and Intelligence. Respondents include 1,000 plan participants 45 and older who work full-time and have access to a 401(k), 403(b), or 457(b) plan through their employer; 500 plan sponsors; and 300 advisers and consultants.
See also:
- Managing Talent Through the Great Resignation
- Why Working Parents Are Quitting Their Jobs—and How to Get Them to Stay
- How to Hang onto Your Top Talent
From: ThinkAdvisor
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