Posted on 06/20/2004 2:51:20 PM PDT by qam1
THE Government is set to raise or abolish the retirement age of 65. People who choose to carry on working until they are 70 will be given full employment rights as Britain falls into line with a European Union directive.
The decision, in a leaked Cabinet paper reported in Sunday newspapers, could be announced within weeks.
The change will take effect in 2006. Some say it is a back-door way to force people to work longer and save the Government money in the face of a pensions crisis.
Business leaders are against scrapping the 65 retirement age.
CBI director Susan Anderson said: 'We don't see any need for change, although we do recognise that in the future we will need more people to work longer.'
Trade union leaders have warned that raising it to 70 could mean that more than 20% of people - and almost one third of men - will die before they receive their occupational pensions.
Research has shown that one in six people in England and Wales died before they reached 65 and a further 7% died before the age of 70.
Londoners, followed by those in the North West and the North would be the biggest losers.
Economists claim that ageing populations will bankrupt Western countries as a wave of post-war baby boomers reach retirement.
TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: 'Many commentators tell us that we can solve the pensions crisis if we all work longer before we retire. But these figures show that many will have to work until they literally drop if the retirement age is increased to 70.
Early retirement is great as long as it's paid for by the individual --- I mean retirement that means you're going to sit around doing nothing but depend on the government.
Just from people in my family --- a woman retired at age 62 and does sit around doing nothing much -- no money for her pills much less travel and she does nothing but complain about how little she gets from the government. My father still works and is in his 70s and travels very well as did my grandfather who worked into his mid 80s. There is usually more money for better trips when there is still an income. Social security isn't enough to live well from and far too many people expect the government to provide it all.
Hey... break it up you wage slaves! Back to work!
FIRST thing we should do is raise all public sector retirement ages to 70.
And eliminate congressional and state legislative pensions immediately.
At 71 I'm doing my part but I need you Xers to work 70 hours a week so there is enough money in Medicare to pay for my Bypass surgery atcoming up at UCSF. I should be good for another 10 years after that...
Thanks - you guys get it.
Great comments.
This is why no one, including me, worries about Social Security if things get bad just up the retirement age and BINGO problem solved.
There's no reason people can't work past 65-- and some of them actually enjoy it. For the most part, I find senior citizens far more pleasant to deal with than people my own age.
And Bismark himself was only retired (involuntary) at the age of 75.
Oh c'mon. Most gen x'ers know it's going to be AT LEAST 72 and gen y'ers are not even counting on it.
No news here unfortunately.
Yep. Convert all SS into IRA's, (401)k's, and the like, and let people decide when they will retire. Some will retire in their 50's and some never.
No, Most Xers pretty much know they ain't going to see a dime of SS. I think most later Baby Boomers realize it's going to be 72, The earlier ones know it to but they are going to be screaming about it.
" I'm hoping to bail from the work force in my mid 50's. "
I'm only 66 and plan to work until i'm at least 80!
Since I do construction work I just hope I stay healthy enough to continue. As long as I can work I will even until it's until the day I die.
Retirement sucks!
I did it at 53............every day is just another Saturday.....it's tough, but somebody's got to do it!! LOL
66 and a construction worker... wow...
I bet you've got the body of a man half your age. (You single?)
I'm only 53 but I'm with you. Easy chair waiting for parts from clones ain't in my future.
"(You single?)"
Sorry, we celebrate our 46th anniversity tomorrow!
I'm 71 also-retired USAF Tsgt. I gave this country my youth, (signed myself into slavery so to speak) for which I was promised Medical care for my family and myself for life-retired pay adjusted yearly for inflation and various other bennies. I don't apologize for collecting what I was promised. My country needed my services and I served twenty years on cooley wages and big promises, while my civilian counterparts were free to job shop, live and raise their children in one place and accumulate wealth as their abilities permitted-while I, ever under the threat of relocation, was limited in making any possible, profitable investments in local areas.
I'm not whining, and crying "poor me" for the choices I made, I am actually completely satisfied with my career choice and would do it all over again. On the other hand I have little sympathy with those who chose to return to the civilian life and lucretive employement opportunities-blew it-and now cry rivers of tears over their self inflicted plight, while envying the likes of me and mine, now that our turn has come.
Why hang the whole burden of fiscal responsibility around the necks of our Xer's-how about demanding that Visente Fox's illegally entered Mexer's bear a portion of America's debt?
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.