According to new research from financial services company Canada Life, one million UK workers claim that they will never retire. So, why do such a significant proportion of workers believe they will never put down their work tools?
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Brits’ retirement plans: what does the research show?
The research by Canada Life shows that 6% of British workers believe they will never retire. This equates to about one million people currently in the workforce.
Meanwhile, 17.1 million working adults (44%) think they will work beyond the State Pension age. This is a decrease of 2.7 million from 51% in 2020.
Why do Brits plan to work beyond the State Pension age?
According to Canada Life, 43% of Brits who expect to work beyond their state pension age think that their pension will not be enough to retire on.
They suspect that they will need to continue making money and believe that this is a major reason for pushing back retirement.
Meanwhile, a quarter (22%) will continue working as they are not sure how long their retirement savings will last. And 10% believe they are prepared but are worried that they will have to continue working to support their current lifestyle, which they see as too costly to maintain in retirement.
However, not all of those who believe they will be working in retirement will have been forced to do so by financial circumstances.
According to the Canada Life study, one in four (23%) want to continue working simply because they enjoy the routine. One in five (21%) enjoy their work and don’t want to stop.
Do Brits have concerns about working past the State Pension age?
In short, yes, they do.
Those who believe they will be working past the State Pension age are most concerned about not being able to enjoy their golden years (34%).
A third (33%) are concerned that their health will deteriorate because they must continue working. Meanwhile, more than a quarter (27%) need or want to work beyond the State Pension age but are concerned that their health may get in the way.
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How can you avoid delaying your retirement?
If you plan to work past the State Pension age not because you have to but because you enjoy your work or the routine, that is perfectly fine.
However, if you are worried that you might have to work longer than you want to for financial reasons, there are things you can do to boost your retirement nest egg. Here are two actions worth considering.
1. Increase your pension contributions
If you are enrolled in a workplace pension, you can choose to make extra contributions. Some employers will also boost what they pay in when you increase your contributions. There might be limits, however, so check with your employer.
Making extra contributions to your pension scheme will also give an immediate boost to your retirement fund in the form of tax relief.
2. Invest wisely
If you are relying on your savings to support your retirement, it may be difficult to save enough to fully cover it unless you are earning a good return on your savings.
In this low-interest environment, it makes sense to consider investing some of your savings in assets that have the potential to earn higher returns, such as stocks and shares. Although riskier, stocks have historically outperformed savings accounts in terms of returns. They could be a great way to build a solid nest egg to fund your retirement.
Ultimately, the key to securing your financial future is to start saving or investing early. This will give more time for the compound growth of your money and could allow you to retire exactly when you want to.
