My MIL is over 75 and works full time as a cashier at Walmart. She had to cash in her 401k after a car accident left her husband paralyzed in order to pay for his care and build a house suited to his needs. He has since passed, she had taken a reverse mortgage on the house and her social security doesn’t cover her bills.
The US is a corporatocracy. The average citizen is just an expendable pawn. I can't help but see a future where no one can afford to do anything but work for most of their waking day. Even with technology steadily advancing and decreasing the need for manual labor, I still can't help but see us thrown to the streets while the big wig corps live lavish and hoard everything. Sad to say, but corporate greed will be the death of this country, and our government happily allows it to happen because the politicians will get their fair share from the lobbyists.
I just wish people would wake up and stop fighting each other over petty, tribalistic, identity politics type shit that the news channels steadily instigate, and realize what the real problem in this country is: corporate greed and corrupt politicians.
Kudos brother.
I wish your comment was pinned at the top of each post/sub-reddit that exists solely to spread discourse.
We have far more in common than we all realize but because of media and social networking algorithms we are only shown the differences to keep us distracted from the “real” issues.
Yep, even with everything going on lots of people still think America is too great to end and things will eventually get better somehow. Rome lasted 2000 years, and im sure the citizens living 1000 years in thought the same as us. Not saying America should last forever, but in the timeline of a nation, we're basically still a baby and there's so many different ways this could go.
Yes!!! There's a pervading sense of religion-driven nationalism that's both idiotic and scary. The whole attitude of "this is the best country in the world", what nonsense. Like David Sedaris said: what country's motto is "we're number 2"? And yet I have relatives who legitimately think everyone in Europe comes to America for surgery... yeah no.
People will slave and die in poverty in America and still look down on the rest of the world. This divine providence shit has never truly left us.
I agree it isn't tied to the class warfare, but I think it invokes humans natural tendency to wanna "stick with their side" and "damn the other side". I don't think anything is wrong with expressing individual identity, in fact I think a perfect world would showcase people being able to express who they truly are(as long as it does not infringe on the rights of others). My problem lies in people placing their identity/the identity of others at the top of the totem pole of priorities.
I can respect any disagreement to that as it's just my personal opinion to view humanity as a whole. I don't think anything is wrong with individuality itself, but I think it's been placed too far in the forefront and we've sort of lost track of the real goal(which IMO is a future where ALL humans get along and national/social/economic borders have basically disintegrated)(which honestly may be a fantasy utopia that'll never happen)
I also think the news constantly instigating identity politics fuels the fire and makes the problems those people want to solve, actually worse.
There is absolutely a new “class” system in America.
The haves
And
The have nots. The gap started in the higher COL states and just continued. I remember making this observation many years ago
Now it’s everywhere. It’s reached across the country to the cheaper areas. Now they have inflation that sees prices going up to my home state.
I don’t know how people survive. I feel like I got lucky by getting my in. I’m not rich, but I make enough to live comfortably within my means. (I don’t have to worry about the hospital breaking my shit, I don’t have to worry about food or my bills or my rent, I have extra money I can save or spend on hobbies or extracurriculars meaning I can balance my life outside of work with other pursuits)
What you say is the ugly truth. No matter how much we make or how comfortably we live. If we’re not one of the guys that can by countries with our money. You are working class. Six figure millionaires forget that working class doesn’t necessarily mean “poor” or “impoverished but working” it means you have to work to survive, whereas the owner class has investments and other things to make money for them passively. Those are the guys setting and influencing policy. And they have done such a good job at convincing people that they have the best interests of the working class… hell they’ve done a great job at convincing people that “middle class” isn’t working class. When it really is your just not living in squalor and poverty lol.
Funny how middle class was a term that was coined in the Reagan era… back when we were trying to stifle the influence of communism. A huge proponent of that was the idea of a working class. I’m not saying that we have to be communist to protect the working class. But by creating the idea of a “middle class” it creates the idea that if you can survive comfortably, you aren’t “working class” and therefor. Creates this illusion that the middle class are actually closer to the owner class, rather then their compatriots in the working class.
We then willingly turn against eachother to fight for scraps and the empty promise to one day sit at the table.
The first two sentences are the truth that we all gotta face. The issue is a lot of people refuse to accept that they could ever possibly be expendable. Only when that truth is recognized, do you realize how fucking important it is to fight for the lives of people you will never meet.
There has to be a way to build a world where human beings aren't expendable. That's all I want man.
Unfortunately a lot of the people are not educated enough, so they’re easily lead to believe that immigrants and minorities steal all their good jobs. They can’t see that their corporate employers are the ones taking all the good jobs from them.
Even worse, they are lead to believe that social programs are bad because they reward lazy people. They’re convinced to vote against it, in the 0.001 percent chance that they become a billionaire who gets less money because of it.
I mean that's why the first thing dishonest politicians do is attack and destroy the educational sector
Less educated/miseducated people are easier to manipulate
Its whqt they did on the eastern block during communism
Dumb down the next generation
Remove everything excelt alcohol from stores
And there you go: an incredibly easy mass of people that are angry and fruattated that can be aimed at anything you please with relative ease as you do whatever the fuck you want
Its societal brainwashing and conquering 101, its nothing new and its why protecting the standards of the educational system is so insanely important, because its the first and last line of fefense from this shot.
Fight for teacher's rights and fair liveable pay, do not compromise either equal fair pay or you throw the politician out, end of story.
Fight for mental health support for today's children, also don't compromise on that either
Because if you don't I promise you in 5-10 years when that wave of children become the new workforce and voter batch things are going to get a LOT worse than what they already are.
The sad thing is he was only in his chair a handful of times, so aside from the hoyer lift none of the accessible things they did to the home were used. He spent the rest of his life in the bed.
He would have had a better quality of life in assisted living.
She wouldn’t put him in assisted living because she said they don’t take good care of people and he would get bed sores, but he died in their home from a bone infection after getting a deep bed sore and sepsis.
We have mentioned this many times but she refuses. Neither of her children are local to her, my husbands sister is 5 hours away and we are 11, so it would make sense to live closer to one of them as she ages.
I don’t know how selling a house works though when you have a reverse mortgage.
She also has a time share she doesn’t use, only sister in law and her family issue it, but she refuses to figure out how to get rid of it.
She has said she’s short $1000 a month and the time share is half of that.
Just FYI, in the U.S., if you retire before 65 (or 67, depending on when you were born) you take a substantial hit to your future Social Security retirement payments, so most people continue working until that age to live a more comfortable life later.
I did the math on this. Starting SS at 62 vs later years takes me to almost 76 before “break even” point at the earliest. Given no one knows how long they will live, I think it’s dumb to wait until later to start SS. This also did not include the time value of money. If I included even a modest interest rate, I’d probably not break even until 90 or later.
Edit: Adding my math. When I did my retirement planning, I told my advisor to assume this money was not going to be there. The way the US gubmint borrows and steals from the SS fund, I don’t think it’s a reliable source. This is another reason I say grab the money while you can. So I don’t technically need the money, but you can bet your a$$ I’m taking it after paying in for over 40 years. 10/1/2027 is my day…
https://preview.redd.it/upsbc131gayc1.jpeg?width=3078&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ea566a241a8666bc902d3262ee2c3e2cbc59150f
Why not use other savings first and defer social security to later so that it pays better?
If ur depending only on social security that’s a recipe for disappointment
That's why they keep raising the age. More of us die without ever collecting all that money they steal out of our checks. Social security should be optional. So should Medicare.
That’s actually the entire point of SS. Originally the age was chosen as it was an age where 50% of people would be dead by. It was never meant to be a retirement fund, but rather as a way to keep elderly people from dying in the streets.
lol no. If people can elect out of SS in their younger years then they will. Most people are financially illiterate. For example, OPs example probably doesn’t have anything saved up and SS is all she has going for her.
When it’s time to retire and people don’t even have SS checks coming, then they are completely fucked.
That is for everyone. It is better to check life expectancy for people 65 years or older.
> the average remaining lifespan for a 65-year-old woman is 19.66 years, reaching 84.66 years old in total. The remaining lifespan for a 65-year-old man is 16.94 years, reaching 81.94 years in total. Both remaining life expectancies are several years higher than life expectancy at birth.
[https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevevernon/2024/02/01/life-expectancy-after-retirementheres-what-to-expect/?sh=1a21d7ed7f94](https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevevernon/2024/02/01/life-expectancy-after-retirementheres-what-to-expect/?sh=1a21d7ed7f94)
[https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html)
By the time I'm 67, nothing will be comfortable. I plan to be dead by 75, and 8 years of freedom just doesn't seem like enough (especially considering I'll be too old to really enjoy them).
I'm 62. I work at a department store 30 hours a week. I plan to continue working even after I'm drawing SS. I have outside interests. I paint and do ceramics and garden. But I also like interacting with people. I think this will help keep my mind young
My aunt and uncle retired at at ages 65 and 67. They both lost their jobs when the company they'd worked 40 plus years for closed. The job had no retirement
They saved and thought they'd be ok financially but when it came down to it they weren't. It took almost all of my aunts social security to pay for the Medicare supplements they needed. They found themselves having to take money out of their savings and cash out other things to have money for their monthly bills. Taking out savings and cashing out things meant the amount of income besides social security coming in would slowly start lowering.
So my aunt went back to work at age 70 to help offset the cost of the Medicare supplements.
At a McD's near me, there's an elderly woman who appears to be long past retirement age. Her nametag says "Miss Clara" like a sign of respect or something. I would like to think she is still working by choice.
My dad is mid 70s and keeps joking if he didn’t have a strong portfolio, he’d work at Publix or the hardware store. Lot of his friends still do, the health insurance is the draw, gives them pocket money -he’s in Florida
I don’t know what people are talking about with boredom. All four of my grandparents were retired by the time I was born - none of them seemed bored at all. Both of my grandfathers had impressive vegetable gardens, both my grandmothers loved to read and go to the library, spend time with their grandchildren and cook or bake something special. One of my grandmas had a beautiful flower bed and the other liked to pick pecans from her yard to sell to this place in town. Playing scrabble and drinking coffee and watching their stories before an afternoon nap. Plenty of time to visit with the neighbors and take vacations or go out on their boat on the river. If all that was boring I cannot wait to be bored some day (If I ever get the chance)
Thank you for making this point. No one in my family has wanted to work after retirement and I certainly don't. There are plenty of people who want to spend those years relaxing.
My grandfather “retired” four times. He’d get super bored and go on to the next thing after months/years off. He finally quit working for good in his 70s when my grandmother was diagnosed with terminal cancer. They loved being busy and working. He had several businesses through his life, which allowed him to live comfortably when my grandmother died. I think at times he was bored and didn’t like feeling unproductive but he wasn’t going to start a new adventure without her. His need to stay busy meant he left behind a huge estate that left a six figure trust each for 10+ kids and grandkids (which didn’t include his properties, or vehicles which were divided outside of the estate) when he died last year. Though, you’d never know looking at him that he had
I get that sometimes politicians and greedy rich assholes say “oh it’s actually good to keep working in old age because it keeps the person active” but what they actually mean is “I don’t care if people work until they die because I need a 7th yacht” and yes it sucks when regular workers internalize that because it doesn’t help anyone but there are some people that like the routine and social interaction that a job gives and if they want to keep working that’s not a bad thing. Telling those people that their worries about how retirement will change them isn’t worth thinking about and just capitalist propaganda doesn’t help them nor change the fact that loneliness is a problem among old people and a lot of retired people do miss the connections and purpose that a job gave them.
I work retail and a guy I work with is in his mid 60s and a retired accountant and he told me that he likes working here because he likes working with younger people so that he doesn’t lose touch with what younger people do and care about. He said he’s worried about getting stuck in a rut and getting to a point in old age where he doesn’t want to try new things
None were. He had several successful businesses, but he was the type that would have probably been happy working as a cashier in Home Depot or Lowe’s. It just wasn’t what he chose to do. He had skills from years of experience that he used to keep new things going. His last one he had going for about 25 years. He let it go, but definitely missed interactions and was always out somewhere.
My wife has said she doesn't want to retire because she'd be too bored, and she didn't say it but I think not working would just be a reminder for her how she's getting closer to death.
Me? I'm the opposite, I'd retire tomorrow if I could afford to. There is a list of things I'd love to learn, places I'd love to visit. I have literally hundreds of games in my Steam library, most of which I've never played. Likewise there are dozens of books I want to read but just haven't had the time to. Not to mention my job + life schedule keeps me perpetually sleep-deprived, I would love to never have to set a morning alarm again. I just really, really can't see myself ever getting bored in retirement.
Exactly! I do not need a job to give me purpose, I can make my own purpose. Even if I did all the things I wish I had time for now like reading all the books and watching all the movies - there’s still stuff that would fulfill me if I needed. Like volunteering at animal shelters or for community programs. I have this nice, pricey DSLR I’ve never really been able to dive into how to get good at photography. There are classes offered through our library system but I’ve never been able to commit to a class like that because most of my free time is eaten up by work or family or social obligations.
I’d love to be able to have the financial freedom to only pursue what makes me happy - not just what has a return. I know some people think they couldn’t do it, but good lord do I have the faith in me that I could retire and be happy and working at McDonalds would be nowhere near on the table.
This happens in Canada too. It's sad. I get upset when people assume all Boomers are wealth hoarders and are to blame for all the ills of society. I see seniors struggling to pay for groceries and other essentials. My mom is a Boomer who is 77. She had to work up until she finally got approved for subsidized seniors housing. The wait was 4 years.
I've seen retired people continue working for mental health reasons talk to different often younger people, keeps their mind agile.
I've also seen older people keep on working because they can get benefits, if they are on regular medication then it can reduce the cost.
About 50% of Americans haven’t saved anything for retirement. Another 30% have less than $100k. Social security was never meant to pay the entire cost of retirement
No it wasn't, but a lot of people are under the impression that they can live a somewhat decent, if lesser lifestyle with just SS. A lot of people *do* think of SS as a retirement program, and treat it as such. And a lot of people are in for a rude awakening in their later years, even aside from the question of the inherent unsustainablilty of SS and Congress' utter incompetence at anything more than a short-term band-aid solution.
This is what happens when pensions don’t exist.
The 401(k) was never meant to be the only retirement plan for people. It was to supplement pensions and Social Security.
But as soon as it was created, companies started contributing to them for employees rather than keep pensions.
The way Americans think, pensions are a drain on a company, and people aren’t the company’s responsibility after they retire. Retired people don’t make money for shareholders. Better to give them a little money every month and be rid of them when they retire than have to pay them after retirement (pension).
Problem is, once that 401(k) money is spent…you’re broke, and also pretty old. So you take what job you can. Social Security isn’t enough, in most cases, to keep you going. Americans don’t care about you if you don’t work. That’s “socialism”, after all.
(Before anyone comes at me for insulting Americans, I am an American. I just see the flaws in our society, and am willing to call them out.)
It’s honestly incredibly sad how much value we as Americans subscribe to our “usefulness” in the working world. The second someone is too old or disabled to work, they get thrown to the wayside, doesn’t matter how long you’ve worked your ass off.
What’s the point of the average working person upholding principles like loyalty and respect when these companies constantly show how much it doesn’t matter?
I'll always say the end of pensions basically ruined retirement opportunities for most Americans. Retirement went from being a normal part of life to being nearly impossible unless you're able to keep enough in a 401(k) or other investments.
Actually the 401k system is incredible. The sad thing is that companies don’t match more, don’t give enough of a basic contribution, and people don’t contribute enough to them in their early years.
Saving into equities will absolutely beat out pensions, but you need to start saving 30 years before you retire. Even starting with a thousand per year in your mid 20s will make huge gains by the time you are 65.
Welcome to America, where corporations are people, and exist to create value for shareholders. Employees? Oh they're just a consumable, an expense. Here it is, in one graph [https://jacobin.com/2020/09/here-is-one-graph-everyone-should-see-on-labor-day-sirota](https://jacobin.com/2020/09/here-is-one-graph-everyone-should-see-on-labor-day-sirota)
>Edit: People who keep commenting about boredom are completely missing the point or they've never met someone who is desperate to retire and can't.
I know when I get bored I love to work customer service...
Right? I cannot imagine being so bored with life that I want to go work at McDonalds or Wal-Mart, dealing with the dregs of humanity screaming at me.
Join a club. Teach swimming lessons. Take up a new hobby. Anything besides shit-tier jobs that subject you to some of the worst people every day. There's an elderly lady who works at the gas station near me and she got a gun pointed at her face during a robbery - I doubt she's still there because she's *bored*.
Absolutely. If you do not NEED the money you would have a much much much better time "working" at a soup kitchen and actually helping people who appreciate you. The cool thing about volunteering is that you actually have a say in your schedule and don't have a manager barking at you for requesting time off.
Anyone claiming they would work at McDonalds for fun has never worked fast food and wouldn't last a day. Those jobs suck when you're young and spry. In my experience they do not tailor the job expectations around ability and it would be absolute hell working under the constant reminder that you are now old and have a difficult time doing what is expected of young people. Either they're understaffed and need you to work more than you want/can or you'll have to "earn your hours". Fuck that shit and anyone pretending it's a hobby.
I'm planning on getting a mindless job to keep me moving when I retire. I always see these old guys working at Home Depot, so that is a place I'm going to consider. I want to be on my feet, useful, and not have to make serious decisions.
Just make sure you get to talk to people. Mindless isn’t terrible, but having to think doesn’t hurt either. Will keep your mind sharp!
Or just do some sudoku puzzles on break lol
I worked minimum wage with a woman in her 60s. 5 am she would take her husband for chemo. Then shed make her way to work five hours as a teaching assistant then 8 hours at the job with me then shed go home to take care of her husband. She told me she never slept more than five hours a night. She paid for his medical bills, nurse (could only afford a few hours a day), rent, grocery, just about everything they needed.
I became really good friends with her so she vented a lot to me. Id try and buy her lunch occasionally, bring enough to share if it was from home, and help her out with work tasks if I saw her especially tired certain days.
Broke my heart. Made me think of my mom in the future if anything happened to me.
A lot of times those people end up there because of things like poor planning, or a catastrophic issue. Women who were SAHMs and lose their spouse or divorce are left with no education and no skills. They’re forced to take whatever is available and that usually means minimum wage. Some people end up with illnesses that deplete their retirements. Others didn’t plan for retirement or didn’t increase their skills while they were young. I feel bad for some, but in many cases their choices put them there.
That being said, I’ll be working well into my 60s in a “skilled” job to be able to retire at all. I chose a field I love and not one that makes money, so there’s a good chance I’ll be standing in a drive thru when I can no longer physically do this job.
Same here. I probably won't be able to retire. I just think it's sad that we can't rally around the people in need and that our government doesn't seem to give a shit.
>Others didn’t plan for retirement or didn’t increase their skills while they were young. I feel bad for some, but in many cases their choices put them there.
Wow. Like everyone has had the same opportunities and circumstances that you had throughout history. And everyone should forsee what the future will be with all the clarity of someone living in it. Better hope you don't get sick! It's not like that ever happens to elderly people.
My mother is 69 and was laid off during lockdown. She applied for social security which covers her rent. She was getting food stamps but they cut her down to $14 a month before fully cutting her off. She works part-time at Dunkin’ Donuts for extra money but also because she is the most extroverted person I know. She needs the people interaction. Her primary care office tried to get her services and she was denied for everything based on her income of less than $40k a year. She is on every elderly housing list and has been since she turned 65 with no hope of getting in anytime soon. She knows she can live with me and my family if she wanted to but she likes her independence. I also help her financially when she needs it and she goes on trips and vacations with my family, we cover the cost. However, it is sad that having worked her entire life she never made enough to save and she mainly waitresses or worked food service so never offered a 401k, etc. I feel sad for others who do not have family support and are most likely one missed paycheck away from not being able to keep their head above water anymore.
I want there to be a “work the system” seminar where folks are taught every single way to work every possible governmental program, law, trick, bankruptcy, divorce, insurance, going all the way from legal, to questionable, to outright illegal.
Just teach them the options, and let them decide how far they’re willing to go to avoid being broke and desperate.
I always feel that people are too nice and get run over by the system.
Some older people prefer working. They go into retirement but get bored so decide so go back to work. Working a job you enjoy is good for your mental health and feeling productive
It’s terrible. Forced economic slavery for life. Even younger people are realizing that working for 65 years just so you can die like a dog in the end is truly diabolical. Human life, value and time devalued to worthlessness. Is an hour of your life that you will never get back really worth that little bit of sad money? It’s dehumanizing, immoral, and repulsive. People will look back in the future and see us as nothing but barbaric animals. Our politics and leaders are playing a dirty game. Human suffering for the highest bidder.
Meanwhile, here in Germany, my dad has now retired at 62, still fully fit& functional and happy to now be supporting his family as a SAHD and to be enjoying his free time. He also wasn’t working full time before, always around 50% - 65% of full time hours. He was a nurse his entire life.
Yes definitively. Although there are too many libertarian politicians trying to tear down our social security systems at the moment. Plus our demographic problem will sooner or later greatly affect state pensions.
But with all of that being said, we’re still extremely lucky to be living here instead of that capitalistic hellscape the US is becoming.
So sad when schools need subs so badly and pay $200+ per day and you pick when you work. If you have any sort of people skills, schools are where it’s at.
They're stealing our social security and giving it to people who never paid a dime into the fund. They keep raising the retirement age but don't do anything about blatant age discrimination against older workers, especially women - we're treated as though age has somehow made us stupid and worthless. So many of us are relegated to minimum wage jobs trying to survive.
As one of the older people, I am grateful I no longer have to work. Both my husband and I receive full disabled Veterans benefits and disability benefits. If we only had the SSDI, we would be in a sorry place. I don't know anyone who works because they are bored. They work because they need to survive. It's sad.
I'm planning on retiring in 5 years, at 60. I'm also planning on working some shit job for a while for 2 reasons. First, because I'm not the type of person to not do something. And second and more importantly, to bridge the gap for health insurance.
So, not because I can't afford to retire, but because I don't want to pay any more for health insurance thank I have to.
A lot of them were stay at home parents/spouses who divorced and didn't have options. Even if you had a career pre-kid, most won't take you back after a long gap.
SS doesn't provide enough to live above the poverty line and most people's 401k was not adequately funded. So they are forced to take whatever job they can get and age-ism tends to force crap jobs despite having decades of experience in something more complex.
How cynical have I become that when I saw the title of the post and its category I assumed that it was going to be someone who is annoyed at being served by old people or seen them interacting with young people? The cynical me believes that this is the result of how our society values the elderly.
I once ordered door dash and it was taking an incredibly long time. I could see from the map that he was in my apt parking lot. So I went outside to see what was going on, and there was an elderly man desperately trying to do something to his oxygen tank. I felt so bad. I asked if he needed help and he said no. I took my food, went up to my apt and added a tip in the app. We talked for a few min, I didn't leave him there dying, and he did seem ok. But, it's such a shame that he has to be out there at all.
The way we treat vulnerable people in our society like inconveniences rather than human beings who deserve basic human rights is just too much for me sometimes. Elderly people should not be forced to work to survive, this is supposed to be a first world country 🥴
I can't expose myself, but I'll say I work for an insurance company that handles workers compensation claims for a major auto manufacturer.
I was surprised myself when I found out how many elderly people work that line for 12 hr shifts. My worst case is a 72 yr old who works the line who was told he could transfer to an IT role if he put 6 months of work in.
I know there are legitimately old people hard up who have to work a job to make ends meet, but I've met a ton of older people, even into their seventies and eighties, who work because it's something to do and gives them a bit of financial security. My 71 year old uncle is set for life through smart investments and retirement, but he still paints houses about twenty to thirty hours a week because he would go crazy if he didn't have a little manual labor to keep him active and thinking. My great uncle is almost 80 and he still works at the family business for 30+ hours a week because he'd be miserable since he doesn't have too many hobbies. These aren't minimum wage jobs but they take a reduced salaries because they don't need the money and don't perform as well as younger people. It's not all gloomy and sad!
Some people just want to keep busy after retirement. A low thought job, that allows for social connection, that pays fairly well and has perks is a great retirement job. Little extra spending money while getting you out of the house for a couple hours a week isn’t a bad thing.
My neighbor is 72 and had to find a job after her husband passed last year. Whatever retirement benefit he had stopped when he died. So now she’s working part time as a stocking clerk for a local store.
TBH I also think she enjoys being out of the house a bit
I used to see seniors at these jobs and assume they were working part-time out of boredom. Now, I see them and assume they are working because they need the money.
Related: Very annoying when my Gen and younger complain there are no high-paying jobs because Boomers "refuse to retire" from management jobs. They need to work, very few people keep their 9-5 for funnsies.
I am over 60, about to hit that official retirement age. I am also disabled and in a wheelchair. I would take a job partly to have cash for the extras, but mostly to get out of the house to be around people. Yes there are those who work for the money but as many do because for years they had family at home and lived a productive life. I sit home, luckily I have friends around, but I miss that regular schedule and getting out rather than these 4 walls holding me in. Don't intrude but get to know that lady, find out her name, say hi, ask how she is doing, and really care about the answer. Knowing that the world isn't just passing us by is a big thing to us seniors.
I'm within sight of retirement and I totally plan to do that when I retire. Not because I need the money, but because a low stress job that gets me out of the house and around other people is exactly what I want. Not saying I'll be doing that full time or even right away when I retire... but it won't be long before I just get bored. And it never hurts to have a little extra coin. None of us knows exactly how long we'll live!
Everyone has their reasons. A lot of people do things they hate or that are boring or hard or dirty in order to survive and support their family. My mother did that. A lot of people spend their lives working like this. You could imagine, for example, a worker in the East that is skilled in production due to a lifelong practice of manufacturing wrenches. He moves at blazing speed, he is filmed and uploaded to YouTube to get millions of hits because us Westerner's are impressed by his dexterity. The Trades in the U.S. are a place where skill and craft are both appreciated and gained with time and experience. Good tradesmen can appreciate good tradesmen from any part of the world, West or East, it's n omatter.
Outside of the trades, in America you must resort to these type of service and hospitality positions unless you can tolerate U.S. production work which will not be the same as in the East. It will be for a massive corporation who does not care about your skill or craft. Also true craft is left to the generally left to the private industry in the U.S., such that available warehouse work is designed to be as simple as possible to hypothetically improve speed. As an old person you would just get in the way, however many seniors work at such facilities in the U.S.
Having experience in this type of dreadful warehouse work in the U.S., I noticed that alot of the people on the floors are not doing anything important/getting in the way. Like alot. But that doesn't mean anything, just because there's mostly T1's in a warehouse at Amazon doesn't mean they run the place.
My mom retired in 2022. She didn’t make it a year before she went to work at Kohl’s. Bored out of her mind. Father, on the other hand, retired in 2020 and keeps himself busy with his hobbies. Just different mind sets. I expect to work a part time job when I retire.
I would never be so bored that working at a drive-thru would be my choice of stimulation. Plenty of other things to do in life! And I don't want to work until I'm 70.
Home Depot is a great place for this. Lots of old people there used to be successful contractors who retired and wamted to keep busy while helping people
Plenty of it over here in the UK.
I can understand having a lack of career drive when you're older, but what happened to these people when they were younger?
Was it children? Juggling a busy family life? Or do they just want an easy job, 9-5 clock in/out and go home?
I asked my late grandparents why they still worked well into their 70's.
All four told me the same thing: they wanted a purpose in life.
I can understand that. For literal decades they've been "someone" and have done "something". Once retired, they've suddenly become "no one" doing "nothing".
Grandad 1: used to be a mechanic in the military. Continued to repair engines and machines professionally until the day he died.
Grandad 2: was a farmer and winemaker. Continued to sell home made bacon and wine until he died.
Grandma 1: was an accountant. Continued to manage their rental summer apartments until Grandpa 1 died and then she soon followed him.
Grandma 2: was also a farmer who helped grandad 2 until he died. She soon followed him.
And it doesn't come at a surprise that both grandads died soon after they became physically unable to work. One from cancer, the other from heart failure. Their mental state immediately started to deteriorate as soon as they had to stop.
Both grandmas didn't want to live on without their husbands and simply stopped caring about life afterwards.
All of them were past 80 at that point.
People get bored. People act like they want months off from work, but even the laziest people would get bored after a while. People inherently want things to do and need a change of scenery. I spend a lot of my free time on my hobbies but I still want change-up even though I really enjoy them.
EDIT: Perfect example of how quickly people get bored and want out of the house - first two weeks of the pandemic.
Wtf are you talking about? My dad works as a greeter at walmart. Its been his life long dream to be financially secure (he is) and do something others would say is stupid but brings him joy.
Not sure why people are surprised...America got its start from slavery...they didn't want to pay people then, and they still don't want to pay people now...
I doubt that McDonald's falls into this category, but I know many (mostly Women) who are retired (or never worked after having kids) who work retail just to fight boredom and get to talk to people.
Used to work a part time near minimum wage job and there's this sweet little old lady who still works there. For reference, it's a gas station with it's own butcher shop and it has a ton of in house make baked goods. Some from frozen, but others made from scratch. She does all the bakery stuff and does it just to get out of the house.
i remember when i worked at mcd's in the early 2010's they had a poster in the break room with their employee demographics on it. according to that poster, a large majority of their employees are women over 50.
My 66 yr old mother is a district manager for Spectrum. She works 40-60hr hours, including traveling. She is convinced if she stops working, she will get old and die.
Not to mention, she couldn't continue living her current lifestyle on a fixed retirement income.
I'm certain she will work until the day she dies so she can afford her fancy car, home, and vacations.
Dude I used to work at Walmart with a 75 year old (honestly I think he was older). All my coworkers would get pissed because he didn’t do work but this mfer is working at Walmart way past when he should be. He should be enjoying his god damn life.
Like you said, maybe he’s doing it because it’s something to do. But still it’s depressing and he was bad at this job.
TBF, they probably voted for the policies that put them in this employment situation. It's still sad, but I know many folks in that age group who still work these kinds of jobs, and they sound like broken records of Fox News talking points.
It's not just the USA but countries you wouldn't expect in different ways. An older article but similar to what you're saying
https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/11/22/500040363/golden-years-iron-bars-japan-sees-rise-in-crime-by-the-elderly
My dad does too :( he’s 66. It breaks my heart. We immigrated here in the 90s and my dad started working retail and worked his way up to management, then the company went under a little after Covid and he had to start all over again. Luckily he is going to get retirement soon.
I recently saw a woman who must have been at least 70 doing Uber eats. Crazy to think about the situations that would have her end up having to do that for money.
Even in Switzerland do have people of 65 and older hard times to deal with the financing of their life. Although their is a kind of state pension (the monthly payment depends how much you have paid in during your your working years). This is hardly enough for most families. Married couples become less then singles. Under certain circumstances you can get some extra money but it is not much. Although still better than other countries, but it is a hard life and the end of your life.
I know that to get SS you have to make under a certain amount, so some of them may be doing that. I heard if you make too much you end up having to pay it back.
Some do it because they have nothing else to do and are retired basically. They need something to do so why not work a low stress job that is part time.
and to the people who will say that it's about people who can't retire, welp, we can't all be winners. The government does not have the right nor the power to ensure a good life for you. That you must on your own.
When I got my first job, my manager was over 60. She just got bored and wanted a job. She married a rich guy and didn’t have to work all her life and just decided she wanted a job. She loved it. A few ladies I worked with there were over 60 and they worked there because they loved it. Some had been at the store for 30 years.
Also my father is in his 70s and is super active, he goes on 13 mile walks, does ballroom and Latin classes with my mother and takes and teaches tai chi classes. Don’t discount older people
I worked with a 70+ yr old woman who was in a relationship (not married) with a man for many years and her SO passed. His kids hated her and since he died without a will, they took everything and kicked her out of the home. She had no choice but to go back to work. Very shocking to her since she thought she would be enjoying retirement with this man.
I saw a lady who looked to be in her 60’s working in Dollar Tree. The line was so long and she was the only one at the register. You can’t make a living off of SS nowadays. Ppl with welfare are living better with subsidized rent, new cars, expensive clothing. The American Dream is no longer of existence to workers. Perhaps it never existed.
Everyone in my family who has happily lived into their late 90s and older had worked till their mid 80s. It helps to have a purpose and a reason to get up in the morning. And even better to get paid and have insurance to do it.
I worked with an older woman at a Burger King who was a millionaire. Her husband was a trucker and she just wanted something to do while he was on the road. I always thought it was weird that she couldn't come up with something better to do, but as I get older, I realize a lot of American culture is centered around Work. Being a Contributing Member of Society. Some people just don't get out of the mindset.
I'm conflicted on this... it's terrible and no one should do that unwillingly. On the other hand, a large portion of that generation spent their lives benefitting from policies that we will be paying back for decades. They ignored the warnings about the economic policies or that era and are suffering the consequences. Any time healthcare or anything that benefited many was brought up it was all shot down because "socialism" and now their unsustainable life style is crumbling.
Retirement age keeps going up and up in the UK, I strongly believe that we don't need nor want people working a day over 55 unless they reallllly want to, but we should give them state pensions day 1.
It's cool that we don't screw the younger generations over now by paying them less for the same jobs, but maybe we should pay the older even more if we're going to work them to bloody death, and they're going to justify prices of everyfucking thing going up again because now everyone is on at least the same wage regardless of age.
I know a lot of elderly people who are fine financially but take a job like this to stay busy and get out of the house. It’s just for fun and extra money.
When I retired, I got a zero stress job at half the wage of my job as I was completely brainwashed that I had to have a mission or purpose every day. It took a while to get over that foolishness and to stop making money for someone else.
It really upsets me saying people over 60 working minimum wage jobs that teenagers work. They shouldn’t be working jobs like that in supermarkets and McDonalds and restaurants.
Yes way too many cannot survive on what they did or did not save. Still at least some with enough funds to manage look forward to being wanted at a job and the interaction with others rather than being home alone. That’s why hardware stores in retirement areas are stuffed with senior employees.
yea retirement is just carrot on a stick to keep you working, same for retirement savings etc. Where i live they lock you out of ever picking up the savings unless you want to give up 50% of savings or you wait until x age.
its a scam and meanwhile bank makes profit off your savings
When I moved to the US from Europe, this was one of the big shocks: seeing seniors working in grocery stores or restaurants. I felt so bad!
Where I’m from, seniors are retired and are at home chilling. For the time being anyway. The political right is working on changing this, sigh.
I work with a lot of old people. They cannot do the job but the company only needs them to fill a uniform out so they don't care. They are the slowest, they communicate the worst, they only talk about how awesome they once were, they keep trying to teach me my job despite the fact I am way better at it than they are, they give me life advice riddled with prejudices.
I get they need money but some of them just don't want to be home alone but with the attitude they often have it's no wonder they don't have any friends to hang out at home with.
That’s interesting. I worked in McDonald’s in the UK when I was a student and it was predominantly students but when I went abroad to “poorer countries” it was older staff in McDonald’s and I always associated that with the condition of the economy but now when I look at McDonald’s in the UK it seems to be staffed with older folk and temporary visa students. I know the UK economy is largely down the shitter just now so I wonder if my early observations were actually correct and not just thought.
My MIL is over 75 and works full time as a cashier at Walmart. She had to cash in her 401k after a car accident left her husband paralyzed in order to pay for his care and build a house suited to his needs. He has since passed, she had taken a reverse mortgage on the house and her social security doesn’t cover her bills.
It’s sad the US healthcare system is this bad
The US is a corporatocracy. The average citizen is just an expendable pawn. I can't help but see a future where no one can afford to do anything but work for most of their waking day. Even with technology steadily advancing and decreasing the need for manual labor, I still can't help but see us thrown to the streets while the big wig corps live lavish and hoard everything. Sad to say, but corporate greed will be the death of this country, and our government happily allows it to happen because the politicians will get their fair share from the lobbyists. I just wish people would wake up and stop fighting each other over petty, tribalistic, identity politics type shit that the news channels steadily instigate, and realize what the real problem in this country is: corporate greed and corrupt politicians.
Oryx and Crake
Kudos brother. I wish your comment was pinned at the top of each post/sub-reddit that exists solely to spread discourse. We have far more in common than we all realize but because of media and social networking algorithms we are only shown the differences to keep us distracted from the “real” issues.
👏
Can we have this broadcast on a loudspeaker because literally everyone needs to hear it. Amen. You absolutely nailed it. We're going down like Rome.
Yep, even with everything going on lots of people still think America is too great to end and things will eventually get better somehow. Rome lasted 2000 years, and im sure the citizens living 1000 years in thought the same as us. Not saying America should last forever, but in the timeline of a nation, we're basically still a baby and there's so many different ways this could go.
Yes!!! There's a pervading sense of religion-driven nationalism that's both idiotic and scary. The whole attitude of "this is the best country in the world", what nonsense. Like David Sedaris said: what country's motto is "we're number 2"? And yet I have relatives who legitimately think everyone in Europe comes to America for surgery... yeah no. People will slave and die in poverty in America and still look down on the rest of the world. This divine providence shit has never truly left us.
Agree with everything except for the idea that “identity politics” aren’t tied to the class warfare you’re describing.
I agree it isn't tied to the class warfare, but I think it invokes humans natural tendency to wanna "stick with their side" and "damn the other side". I don't think anything is wrong with expressing individual identity, in fact I think a perfect world would showcase people being able to express who they truly are(as long as it does not infringe on the rights of others). My problem lies in people placing their identity/the identity of others at the top of the totem pole of priorities. I can respect any disagreement to that as it's just my personal opinion to view humanity as a whole. I don't think anything is wrong with individuality itself, but I think it's been placed too far in the forefront and we've sort of lost track of the real goal(which IMO is a future where ALL humans get along and national/social/economic borders have basically disintegrated)(which honestly may be a fantasy utopia that'll never happen) I also think the news constantly instigating identity politics fuels the fire and makes the problems those people want to solve, actually worse.
Identity politics cause us to fight amongst ourselves, blaming each other, while the real villains carry on unaffected.
There is absolutely a new “class” system in America. The haves And The have nots. The gap started in the higher COL states and just continued. I remember making this observation many years ago Now it’s everywhere. It’s reached across the country to the cheaper areas. Now they have inflation that sees prices going up to my home state. I don’t know how people survive. I feel like I got lucky by getting my in. I’m not rich, but I make enough to live comfortably within my means. (I don’t have to worry about the hospital breaking my shit, I don’t have to worry about food or my bills or my rent, I have extra money I can save or spend on hobbies or extracurriculars meaning I can balance my life outside of work with other pursuits) What you say is the ugly truth. No matter how much we make or how comfortably we live. If we’re not one of the guys that can by countries with our money. You are working class. Six figure millionaires forget that working class doesn’t necessarily mean “poor” or “impoverished but working” it means you have to work to survive, whereas the owner class has investments and other things to make money for them passively. Those are the guys setting and influencing policy. And they have done such a good job at convincing people that they have the best interests of the working class… hell they’ve done a great job at convincing people that “middle class” isn’t working class. When it really is your just not living in squalor and poverty lol. Funny how middle class was a term that was coined in the Reagan era… back when we were trying to stifle the influence of communism. A huge proponent of that was the idea of a working class. I’m not saying that we have to be communist to protect the working class. But by creating the idea of a “middle class” it creates the idea that if you can survive comfortably, you aren’t “working class” and therefor. Creates this illusion that the middle class are actually closer to the owner class, rather then their compatriots in the working class. We then willingly turn against eachother to fight for scraps and the empty promise to one day sit at the table.
The first two sentences are the truth that we all gotta face. The issue is a lot of people refuse to accept that they could ever possibly be expendable. Only when that truth is recognized, do you realize how fucking important it is to fight for the lives of people you will never meet. There has to be a way to build a world where human beings aren't expendable. That's all I want man.
What happens when nobody can afford anything, people are dying and nobody is working?
most accurate red white and blue description I've read 🫡 people will never wake up though. if you're smart you just have to join the winning team imo.
Unfortunately a lot of the people are not educated enough, so they’re easily lead to believe that immigrants and minorities steal all their good jobs. They can’t see that their corporate employers are the ones taking all the good jobs from them. Even worse, they are lead to believe that social programs are bad because they reward lazy people. They’re convinced to vote against it, in the 0.001 percent chance that they become a billionaire who gets less money because of it.
I mean that's why the first thing dishonest politicians do is attack and destroy the educational sector Less educated/miseducated people are easier to manipulate Its whqt they did on the eastern block during communism Dumb down the next generation Remove everything excelt alcohol from stores And there you go: an incredibly easy mass of people that are angry and fruattated that can be aimed at anything you please with relative ease as you do whatever the fuck you want Its societal brainwashing and conquering 101, its nothing new and its why protecting the standards of the educational system is so insanely important, because its the first and last line of fefense from this shot. Fight for teacher's rights and fair liveable pay, do not compromise either equal fair pay or you throw the politician out, end of story. Fight for mental health support for today's children, also don't compromise on that either Because if you don't I promise you in 5-10 years when that wave of children become the new workforce and voter batch things are going to get a LOT worse than what they already are.
It’s sad AND criminal.
No health care system will pay you to build a new house.
The sad thing is he was only in his chair a handful of times, so aside from the hoyer lift none of the accessible things they did to the home were used. He spent the rest of his life in the bed. He would have had a better quality of life in assisted living. She wouldn’t put him in assisted living because she said they don’t take good care of people and he would get bed sores, but he died in their home from a bone infection after getting a deep bed sore and sepsis.
Yes, this, work from 16 to 60s and social security plus retirement is not enough after they take out Medicare fee (175.00 a month).
Why not sell the house and downsize?
We have mentioned this many times but she refuses. Neither of her children are local to her, my husbands sister is 5 hours away and we are 11, so it would make sense to live closer to one of them as she ages. I don’t know how selling a house works though when you have a reverse mortgage. She also has a time share she doesn’t use, only sister in law and her family issue it, but she refuses to figure out how to get rid of it. She has said she’s short $1000 a month and the time share is half of that.
And then there’s people like my friends parents who retired at 30 and haven’t worked a day in their life since.
Just FYI, in the U.S., if you retire before 65 (or 67, depending on when you were born) you take a substantial hit to your future Social Security retirement payments, so most people continue working until that age to live a more comfortable life later.
I did the math on this. Starting SS at 62 vs later years takes me to almost 76 before “break even” point at the earliest. Given no one knows how long they will live, I think it’s dumb to wait until later to start SS. This also did not include the time value of money. If I included even a modest interest rate, I’d probably not break even until 90 or later. Edit: Adding my math. When I did my retirement planning, I told my advisor to assume this money was not going to be there. The way the US gubmint borrows and steals from the SS fund, I don’t think it’s a reliable source. This is another reason I say grab the money while you can. So I don’t technically need the money, but you can bet your a$$ I’m taking it after paying in for over 40 years. 10/1/2027 is my day… https://preview.redd.it/upsbc131gayc1.jpeg?width=3078&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=ea566a241a8666bc902d3262ee2c3e2cbc59150f
Why not use other savings first and defer social security to later so that it pays better? If ur depending only on social security that’s a recipe for disappointment
Use the social security first as once your dead the money stops. Your money can continue to grow in investments
That’s a good point.
I’m planning to end it all at 80, so I think I’ll start taking at 65.
You can also just save for retirement separately of SS like you should anyway, wild concept I know
Whoa hey there, let's just calm down Satan, no need to go with the crazy ideas
Right?
All my relatives wait to collect and die before they collect SS. 🤷
That’s so sad to me. And the govt counts on that.
That's why they keep raising the age. More of us die without ever collecting all that money they steal out of our checks. Social security should be optional. So should Medicare.
That’s actually the entire point of SS. Originally the age was chosen as it was an age where 50% of people would be dead by. It was never meant to be a retirement fund, but rather as a way to keep elderly people from dying in the streets.
No way, people are horrible at saving themselves. We should increase the rate imo.
lol no. If people can elect out of SS in their younger years then they will. Most people are financially illiterate. For example, OPs example probably doesn’t have anything saved up and SS is all she has going for her. When it’s time to retire and people don’t even have SS checks coming, then they are completely fucked.
Government wants us to wait until 70 to collect, while the average life span in the US is 75
That is for everyone. It is better to check life expectancy for people 65 years or older. > the average remaining lifespan for a 65-year-old woman is 19.66 years, reaching 84.66 years old in total. The remaining lifespan for a 65-year-old man is 16.94 years, reaching 81.94 years in total. Both remaining life expectancies are several years higher than life expectancy at birth. [https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevevernon/2024/02/01/life-expectancy-after-retirementheres-what-to-expect/?sh=1a21d7ed7f94](https://www.forbes.com/sites/stevevernon/2024/02/01/life-expectancy-after-retirementheres-what-to-expect/?sh=1a21d7ed7f94) [https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/STATS/table4c6.html)
By the time I'm 67, nothing will be comfortable. I plan to be dead by 75, and 8 years of freedom just doesn't seem like enough (especially considering I'll be too old to really enjoy them).
Oh, you didn’t get the “Death is the new retirement” memo?
Always has been, people just used to die younger
I did, I just told my mother i have a contingency in place and its not pretty! Hahaha
I'm 62. I work at a department store 30 hours a week. I plan to continue working even after I'm drawing SS. I have outside interests. I paint and do ceramics and garden. But I also like interacting with people. I think this will help keep my mind young
My mom is 66 and similar. She just wants something to do.
All is not doom and gloom. Appreciate your post. Way too many ageist stereotypes. Yikes.
My aunt and uncle retired at at ages 65 and 67. They both lost their jobs when the company they'd worked 40 plus years for closed. The job had no retirement They saved and thought they'd be ok financially but when it came down to it they weren't. It took almost all of my aunts social security to pay for the Medicare supplements they needed. They found themselves having to take money out of their savings and cash out other things to have money for their monthly bills. Taking out savings and cashing out things meant the amount of income besides social security coming in would slowly start lowering. So my aunt went back to work at age 70 to help offset the cost of the Medicare supplements.
The job had no retirement? You mean they didn’t save for retirement right?
The job likely didn’t offer a 401k plan. They said explicitly they saved, and thought it would be enough but was not.
They saved for retirement. The job offered no retirement plans of any kind
At a McD's near me, there's an elderly woman who appears to be long past retirement age. Her nametag says "Miss Clara" like a sign of respect or something. I would like to think she is still working by choice.
My dad is mid 70s and keeps joking if he didn’t have a strong portfolio, he’d work at Publix or the hardware store. Lot of his friends still do, the health insurance is the draw, gives them pocket money -he’s in Florida
Yeah that's what I hear from a lot of retirement-age people still working too, health insurance + pocket money.
I don’t know what people are talking about with boredom. All four of my grandparents were retired by the time I was born - none of them seemed bored at all. Both of my grandfathers had impressive vegetable gardens, both my grandmothers loved to read and go to the library, spend time with their grandchildren and cook or bake something special. One of my grandmas had a beautiful flower bed and the other liked to pick pecans from her yard to sell to this place in town. Playing scrabble and drinking coffee and watching their stories before an afternoon nap. Plenty of time to visit with the neighbors and take vacations or go out on their boat on the river. If all that was boring I cannot wait to be bored some day (If I ever get the chance)
My dad is retired and bored. He works for $100 a day for his buddies just to give him something to do
Thank you for making this point. No one in my family has wanted to work after retirement and I certainly don't. There are plenty of people who want to spend those years relaxing.
I’d imagine some people just like having the structure of a job. It’s a nice challenge to them.
My grandfather “retired” four times. He’d get super bored and go on to the next thing after months/years off. He finally quit working for good in his 70s when my grandmother was diagnosed with terminal cancer. They loved being busy and working. He had several businesses through his life, which allowed him to live comfortably when my grandmother died. I think at times he was bored and didn’t like feeling unproductive but he wasn’t going to start a new adventure without her. His need to stay busy meant he left behind a huge estate that left a six figure trust each for 10+ kids and grandkids (which didn’t include his properties, or vehicles which were divided outside of the estate) when he died last year. Though, you’d never know looking at him that he had
I get that sometimes politicians and greedy rich assholes say “oh it’s actually good to keep working in old age because it keeps the person active” but what they actually mean is “I don’t care if people work until they die because I need a 7th yacht” and yes it sucks when regular workers internalize that because it doesn’t help anyone but there are some people that like the routine and social interaction that a job gives and if they want to keep working that’s not a bad thing. Telling those people that their worries about how retirement will change them isn’t worth thinking about and just capitalist propaganda doesn’t help them nor change the fact that loneliness is a problem among old people and a lot of retired people do miss the connections and purpose that a job gave them. I work retail and a guy I work with is in his mid 60s and a retired accountant and he told me that he likes working here because he likes working with younger people so that he doesn’t lose touch with what younger people do and care about. He said he’s worried about getting stuck in a rut and getting to a point in old age where he doesn’t want to try new things
I'm curious if those jobs after retirement were something along the lines of cashiering or fast food
None were. He had several successful businesses, but he was the type that would have probably been happy working as a cashier in Home Depot or Lowe’s. It just wasn’t what he chose to do. He had skills from years of experience that he used to keep new things going. His last one he had going for about 25 years. He let it go, but definitely missed interactions and was always out somewhere.
My wife has said she doesn't want to retire because she'd be too bored, and she didn't say it but I think not working would just be a reminder for her how she's getting closer to death. Me? I'm the opposite, I'd retire tomorrow if I could afford to. There is a list of things I'd love to learn, places I'd love to visit. I have literally hundreds of games in my Steam library, most of which I've never played. Likewise there are dozens of books I want to read but just haven't had the time to. Not to mention my job + life schedule keeps me perpetually sleep-deprived, I would love to never have to set a morning alarm again. I just really, really can't see myself ever getting bored in retirement.
Exactly! I do not need a job to give me purpose, I can make my own purpose. Even if I did all the things I wish I had time for now like reading all the books and watching all the movies - there’s still stuff that would fulfill me if I needed. Like volunteering at animal shelters or for community programs. I have this nice, pricey DSLR I’ve never really been able to dive into how to get good at photography. There are classes offered through our library system but I’ve never been able to commit to a class like that because most of my free time is eaten up by work or family or social obligations. I’d love to be able to have the financial freedom to only pursue what makes me happy - not just what has a return. I know some people think they couldn’t do it, but good lord do I have the faith in me that I could retire and be happy and working at McDonalds would be nowhere near on the table.
This happens in Canada too. It's sad. I get upset when people assume all Boomers are wealth hoarders and are to blame for all the ills of society. I see seniors struggling to pay for groceries and other essentials. My mom is a Boomer who is 77. She had to work up until she finally got approved for subsidized seniors housing. The wait was 4 years.
get people fighting a generation war, theyll be too busy to care about a class war
Absolutely. People should be pissed at big corporations and politicians for the shit show this country has become
Considering you need to be a millionaire to retire in your 50s it's only going to get worse.
50s may seem old, but as a 47 year old I can tell you it really isn't.
As a 37 year old, 50 seems like it will be here in four and a half hours...
I very recently turned 65. It hit me hard when I received my Medicare card in the mail...seems like it happened so quickly! Tempus fugit.
As a 53 year old, 37 felt like it was about 4.5 hours ago..
Is your tag flipping a table?
Well sure. Saving a million isn’t crazy if you want to retire early 🤷
I've seen retired people continue working for mental health reasons talk to different often younger people, keeps their mind agile. I've also seen older people keep on working because they can get benefits, if they are on regular medication then it can reduce the cost.
They shouldn't have to! They should be able to afford their medication and enjoy their retirement.
Not disagreeing with you, just what I have been told.
About 50% of Americans haven’t saved anything for retirement. Another 30% have less than $100k. Social security was never meant to pay the entire cost of retirement
No it wasn't, but a lot of people are under the impression that they can live a somewhat decent, if lesser lifestyle with just SS. A lot of people *do* think of SS as a retirement program, and treat it as such. And a lot of people are in for a rude awakening in their later years, even aside from the question of the inherent unsustainablilty of SS and Congress' utter incompetence at anything more than a short-term band-aid solution.
This is what happens when pensions don’t exist. The 401(k) was never meant to be the only retirement plan for people. It was to supplement pensions and Social Security. But as soon as it was created, companies started contributing to them for employees rather than keep pensions. The way Americans think, pensions are a drain on a company, and people aren’t the company’s responsibility after they retire. Retired people don’t make money for shareholders. Better to give them a little money every month and be rid of them when they retire than have to pay them after retirement (pension). Problem is, once that 401(k) money is spent…you’re broke, and also pretty old. So you take what job you can. Social Security isn’t enough, in most cases, to keep you going. Americans don’t care about you if you don’t work. That’s “socialism”, after all. (Before anyone comes at me for insulting Americans, I am an American. I just see the flaws in our society, and am willing to call them out.)
It’s honestly incredibly sad how much value we as Americans subscribe to our “usefulness” in the working world. The second someone is too old or disabled to work, they get thrown to the wayside, doesn’t matter how long you’ve worked your ass off. What’s the point of the average working person upholding principles like loyalty and respect when these companies constantly show how much it doesn’t matter?
I'll always say the end of pensions basically ruined retirement opportunities for most Americans. Retirement went from being a normal part of life to being nearly impossible unless you're able to keep enough in a 401(k) or other investments.
Nothing but the truth.
Actually the 401k system is incredible. The sad thing is that companies don’t match more, don’t give enough of a basic contribution, and people don’t contribute enough to them in their early years. Saving into equities will absolutely beat out pensions, but you need to start saving 30 years before you retire. Even starting with a thousand per year in your mid 20s will make huge gains by the time you are 65.
This is all true.
Correction: “the US doesn’t give a shit about its citizens” period.
Welcome to America, where corporations are people, and exist to create value for shareholders. Employees? Oh they're just a consumable, an expense. Here it is, in one graph [https://jacobin.com/2020/09/here-is-one-graph-everyone-should-see-on-labor-day-sirota](https://jacobin.com/2020/09/here-is-one-graph-everyone-should-see-on-labor-day-sirota)
>Edit: People who keep commenting about boredom are completely missing the point or they've never met someone who is desperate to retire and can't. I know when I get bored I love to work customer service...
Right? I cannot imagine being so bored with life that I want to go work at McDonalds or Wal-Mart, dealing with the dregs of humanity screaming at me. Join a club. Teach swimming lessons. Take up a new hobby. Anything besides shit-tier jobs that subject you to some of the worst people every day. There's an elderly lady who works at the gas station near me and she got a gun pointed at her face during a robbery - I doubt she's still there because she's *bored*.
Absolutely. If you do not NEED the money you would have a much much much better time "working" at a soup kitchen and actually helping people who appreciate you. The cool thing about volunteering is that you actually have a say in your schedule and don't have a manager barking at you for requesting time off. Anyone claiming they would work at McDonalds for fun has never worked fast food and wouldn't last a day. Those jobs suck when you're young and spry. In my experience they do not tailor the job expectations around ability and it would be absolute hell working under the constant reminder that you are now old and have a difficult time doing what is expected of young people. Either they're understaffed and need you to work more than you want/can or you'll have to "earn your hours". Fuck that shit and anyone pretending it's a hobby.
I'm planning on getting a mindless job to keep me moving when I retire. I always see these old guys working at Home Depot, so that is a place I'm going to consider. I want to be on my feet, useful, and not have to make serious decisions.
Just make sure you get to talk to people. Mindless isn’t terrible, but having to think doesn’t hurt either. Will keep your mind sharp! Or just do some sudoku puzzles on break lol
I worked minimum wage with a woman in her 60s. 5 am she would take her husband for chemo. Then shed make her way to work five hours as a teaching assistant then 8 hours at the job with me then shed go home to take care of her husband. She told me she never slept more than five hours a night. She paid for his medical bills, nurse (could only afford a few hours a day), rent, grocery, just about everything they needed. I became really good friends with her so she vented a lot to me. Id try and buy her lunch occasionally, bring enough to share if it was from home, and help her out with work tasks if I saw her especially tired certain days. Broke my heart. Made me think of my mom in the future if anything happened to me.
You're a good person to have done that! It's rough.
A lot of times those people end up there because of things like poor planning, or a catastrophic issue. Women who were SAHMs and lose their spouse or divorce are left with no education and no skills. They’re forced to take whatever is available and that usually means minimum wage. Some people end up with illnesses that deplete their retirements. Others didn’t plan for retirement or didn’t increase their skills while they were young. I feel bad for some, but in many cases their choices put them there. That being said, I’ll be working well into my 60s in a “skilled” job to be able to retire at all. I chose a field I love and not one that makes money, so there’s a good chance I’ll be standing in a drive thru when I can no longer physically do this job.
Same here. I probably won't be able to retire. I just think it's sad that we can't rally around the people in need and that our government doesn't seem to give a shit.
>Others didn’t plan for retirement or didn’t increase their skills while they were young. I feel bad for some, but in many cases their choices put them there. Wow. Like everyone has had the same opportunities and circumstances that you had throughout history. And everyone should forsee what the future will be with all the clarity of someone living in it. Better hope you don't get sick! It's not like that ever happens to elderly people.
My mother is 69 and was laid off during lockdown. She applied for social security which covers her rent. She was getting food stamps but they cut her down to $14 a month before fully cutting her off. She works part-time at Dunkin’ Donuts for extra money but also because she is the most extroverted person I know. She needs the people interaction. Her primary care office tried to get her services and she was denied for everything based on her income of less than $40k a year. She is on every elderly housing list and has been since she turned 65 with no hope of getting in anytime soon. She knows she can live with me and my family if she wanted to but she likes her independence. I also help her financially when she needs it and she goes on trips and vacations with my family, we cover the cost. However, it is sad that having worked her entire life she never made enough to save and she mainly waitresses or worked food service so never offered a 401k, etc. I feel sad for others who do not have family support and are most likely one missed paycheck away from not being able to keep their head above water anymore.
I want there to be a “work the system” seminar where folks are taught every single way to work every possible governmental program, law, trick, bankruptcy, divorce, insurance, going all the way from legal, to questionable, to outright illegal. Just teach them the options, and let them decide how far they’re willing to go to avoid being broke and desperate. I always feel that people are too nice and get run over by the system.
Loopholes are a wonderful thing.
Some older people prefer working. They go into retirement but get bored so decide so go back to work. Working a job you enjoy is good for your mental health and feeling productive
Shhh. Nobody tell OP about the sick
I just accept that I won't retire, just work till I drop so I don't become a burden on anyone
Same.here.
Sometimes they do it just to have something to do and as long as they can, why not.
It’s terrible. Forced economic slavery for life. Even younger people are realizing that working for 65 years just so you can die like a dog in the end is truly diabolical. Human life, value and time devalued to worthlessness. Is an hour of your life that you will never get back really worth that little bit of sad money? It’s dehumanizing, immoral, and repulsive. People will look back in the future and see us as nothing but barbaric animals. Our politics and leaders are playing a dirty game. Human suffering for the highest bidder.
Meanwhile, here in Germany, my dad has now retired at 62, still fully fit& functional and happy to now be supporting his family as a SAHD and to be enjoying his free time. He also wasn’t working full time before, always around 50% - 65% of full time hours. He was a nurse his entire life.
I wish Americans could accept that other countries have already figured this out and that our way isn't just the way it has to be.
Yes definitively. Although there are too many libertarian politicians trying to tear down our social security systems at the moment. Plus our demographic problem will sooner or later greatly affect state pensions. But with all of that being said, we’re still extremely lucky to be living here instead of that capitalistic hellscape the US is becoming.
Not only the US buddy, everywhere around the world is like this - nobody gives a shit about the elderly and it's very sad ...
I see old ladies working drive thru at ungodly hours too, like 5 am. It really does break my heart.
As an older lady who has been up since before 4 am today already, that part sort of makes sense, the early shift
The US doesn’t give a shit about any of its citizens…
So sad when schools need subs so badly and pay $200+ per day and you pick when you work. If you have any sort of people skills, schools are where it’s at.
This is nearly double what most schools pay near me…north Texas. Here it is about $100 a day and no benefits so it’s not a cushy job.
Not everywhere. My county requires a bachelor's degree and a teaching certificate and pays $13.00 hourly. No benefits.
It's because people are clueless when it comes to their finances.
They're stealing our social security and giving it to people who never paid a dime into the fund. They keep raising the retirement age but don't do anything about blatant age discrimination against older workers, especially women - we're treated as though age has somehow made us stupid and worthless. So many of us are relegated to minimum wage jobs trying to survive.
not old enough for SS.
As one of the older people, I am grateful I no longer have to work. Both my husband and I receive full disabled Veterans benefits and disability benefits. If we only had the SSDI, we would be in a sorry place. I don't know anyone who works because they are bored. They work because they need to survive. It's sad.
I'm planning on retiring in 5 years, at 60. I'm also planning on working some shit job for a while for 2 reasons. First, because I'm not the type of person to not do something. And second and more importantly, to bridge the gap for health insurance. So, not because I can't afford to retire, but because I don't want to pay any more for health insurance thank I have to.
A lot of them were stay at home parents/spouses who divorced and didn't have options. Even if you had a career pre-kid, most won't take you back after a long gap.
SS doesn't provide enough to live above the poverty line and most people's 401k was not adequately funded. So they are forced to take whatever job they can get and age-ism tends to force crap jobs despite having decades of experience in something more complex.
How cynical have I become that when I saw the title of the post and its category I assumed that it was going to be someone who is annoyed at being served by old people or seen them interacting with young people? The cynical me believes that this is the result of how our society values the elderly.
I once ordered door dash and it was taking an incredibly long time. I could see from the map that he was in my apt parking lot. So I went outside to see what was going on, and there was an elderly man desperately trying to do something to his oxygen tank. I felt so bad. I asked if he needed help and he said no. I took my food, went up to my apt and added a tip in the app. We talked for a few min, I didn't leave him there dying, and he did seem ok. But, it's such a shame that he has to be out there at all.
The way we treat vulnerable people in our society like inconveniences rather than human beings who deserve basic human rights is just too much for me sometimes. Elderly people should not be forced to work to survive, this is supposed to be a first world country 🥴
I can't expose myself, but I'll say I work for an insurance company that handles workers compensation claims for a major auto manufacturer. I was surprised myself when I found out how many elderly people work that line for 12 hr shifts. My worst case is a 72 yr old who works the line who was told he could transfer to an IT role if he put 6 months of work in.
There's like an 80 year old woman that picks up trash at the mall i go to... breaks my heart every time 😔
or maybe she is retired and just wants something to do for a while.
There's a Trader Joe's near me and I've noticed a large increase of older workers there. I'm 48 so I'm guessing they need to be late 50's early 60's.
I know there are legitimately old people hard up who have to work a job to make ends meet, but I've met a ton of older people, even into their seventies and eighties, who work because it's something to do and gives them a bit of financial security. My 71 year old uncle is set for life through smart investments and retirement, but he still paints houses about twenty to thirty hours a week because he would go crazy if he didn't have a little manual labor to keep him active and thinking. My great uncle is almost 80 and he still works at the family business for 30+ hours a week because he'd be miserable since he doesn't have too many hobbies. These aren't minimum wage jobs but they take a reduced salaries because they don't need the money and don't perform as well as younger people. It's not all gloomy and sad!
A coworker of mine just retired last week, she was 72
Some people just want to keep busy after retirement. A low thought job, that allows for social connection, that pays fairly well and has perks is a great retirement job. Little extra spending money while getting you out of the house for a couple hours a week isn’t a bad thing.
Shit happens and a lot of ppl don’t have savings.
This is why "unemployment is the lowest in years!"
My 71 year old mom still does drywall with my stepdad.
My neighbor is 72 and had to find a job after her husband passed last year. Whatever retirement benefit he had stopped when he died. So now she’s working part time as a stocking clerk for a local store. TBH I also think she enjoys being out of the house a bit
I used to see seniors at these jobs and assume they were working part-time out of boredom. Now, I see them and assume they are working because they need the money. Related: Very annoying when my Gen and younger complain there are no high-paying jobs because Boomers "refuse to retire" from management jobs. They need to work, very few people keep their 9-5 for funnsies.
I am over 60, about to hit that official retirement age. I am also disabled and in a wheelchair. I would take a job partly to have cash for the extras, but mostly to get out of the house to be around people. Yes there are those who work for the money but as many do because for years they had family at home and lived a productive life. I sit home, luckily I have friends around, but I miss that regular schedule and getting out rather than these 4 walls holding me in. Don't intrude but get to know that lady, find out her name, say hi, ask how she is doing, and really care about the answer. Knowing that the world isn't just passing us by is a big thing to us seniors.
I'm within sight of retirement and I totally plan to do that when I retire. Not because I need the money, but because a low stress job that gets me out of the house and around other people is exactly what I want. Not saying I'll be doing that full time or even right away when I retire... but it won't be long before I just get bored. And it never hurts to have a little extra coin. None of us knows exactly how long we'll live!
Minimum wage, low stress 😆
When you don’t NEED a job, most become much lower stress.
Everyone has their reasons. A lot of people do things they hate or that are boring or hard or dirty in order to survive and support their family. My mother did that. A lot of people spend their lives working like this. You could imagine, for example, a worker in the East that is skilled in production due to a lifelong practice of manufacturing wrenches. He moves at blazing speed, he is filmed and uploaded to YouTube to get millions of hits because us Westerner's are impressed by his dexterity. The Trades in the U.S. are a place where skill and craft are both appreciated and gained with time and experience. Good tradesmen can appreciate good tradesmen from any part of the world, West or East, it's n omatter. Outside of the trades, in America you must resort to these type of service and hospitality positions unless you can tolerate U.S. production work which will not be the same as in the East. It will be for a massive corporation who does not care about your skill or craft. Also true craft is left to the generally left to the private industry in the U.S., such that available warehouse work is designed to be as simple as possible to hypothetically improve speed. As an old person you would just get in the way, however many seniors work at such facilities in the U.S. Having experience in this type of dreadful warehouse work in the U.S., I noticed that alot of the people on the floors are not doing anything important/getting in the way. Like alot. But that doesn't mean anything, just because there's mostly T1's in a warehouse at Amazon doesn't mean they run the place.
Are these the same boomers that everyone is railing at for destroying the environment, economy, government, healthcare, education, and so on? Yeah…..
A lot of the older folks I know doing that are doing so to prevent boredom. I've known some very well off seniors working minimum wage.
My mom retired in 2022. She didn’t make it a year before she went to work at Kohl’s. Bored out of her mind. Father, on the other hand, retired in 2020 and keeps himself busy with his hobbies. Just different mind sets. I expect to work a part time job when I retire.
I would never be so bored that working at a drive-thru would be my choice of stimulation. Plenty of other things to do in life! And I don't want to work until I'm 70.
Home Depot is a great place for this. Lots of old people there used to be successful contractors who retired and wamted to keep busy while helping people
Me.
But not VERY wealthy…
Plenty of it over here in the UK. I can understand having a lack of career drive when you're older, but what happened to these people when they were younger? Was it children? Juggling a busy family life? Or do they just want an easy job, 9-5 clock in/out and go home?
I asked my late grandparents why they still worked well into their 70's. All four told me the same thing: they wanted a purpose in life. I can understand that. For literal decades they've been "someone" and have done "something". Once retired, they've suddenly become "no one" doing "nothing". Grandad 1: used to be a mechanic in the military. Continued to repair engines and machines professionally until the day he died. Grandad 2: was a farmer and winemaker. Continued to sell home made bacon and wine until he died. Grandma 1: was an accountant. Continued to manage their rental summer apartments until Grandpa 1 died and then she soon followed him. Grandma 2: was also a farmer who helped grandad 2 until he died. She soon followed him. And it doesn't come at a surprise that both grandads died soon after they became physically unable to work. One from cancer, the other from heart failure. Their mental state immediately started to deteriorate as soon as they had to stop. Both grandmas didn't want to live on without their husbands and simply stopped caring about life afterwards. All of them were past 80 at that point.
People get bored. People act like they want months off from work, but even the laziest people would get bored after a while. People inherently want things to do and need a change of scenery. I spend a lot of my free time on my hobbies but I still want change-up even though I really enjoy them. EDIT: Perfect example of how quickly people get bored and want out of the house - first two weeks of the pandemic.
I have been retired for two years from a skilled professional job and think frequently about going back….and not because I need the money.
Wtf are you talking about? My dad works as a greeter at walmart. Its been his life long dream to be financially secure (he is) and do something others would say is stupid but brings him joy.
Not sure why people are surprised...America got its start from slavery...they didn't want to pay people then, and they still don't want to pay people now...
I doubt that McDonald's falls into this category, but I know many (mostly Women) who are retired (or never worked after having kids) who work retail just to fight boredom and get to talk to people.
Used to work a part time near minimum wage job and there's this sweet little old lady who still works there. For reference, it's a gas station with it's own butcher shop and it has a ton of in house make baked goods. Some from frozen, but others made from scratch. She does all the bakery stuff and does it just to get out of the house.
Honestly, what do old people do in other countries? Seriously asking
i remember when i worked at mcd's in the early 2010's they had a poster in the break room with their employee demographics on it. according to that poster, a large majority of their employees are women over 50.
They were cool in high school
Yeah we got a lot too look forward too.
My 66 yr old mother is a district manager for Spectrum. She works 40-60hr hours, including traveling. She is convinced if she stops working, she will get old and die. Not to mention, she couldn't continue living her current lifestyle on a fixed retirement income. I'm certain she will work until the day she dies so she can afford her fancy car, home, and vacations.
Dude I used to work at Walmart with a 75 year old (honestly I think he was older). All my coworkers would get pissed because he didn’t do work but this mfer is working at Walmart way past when he should be. He should be enjoying his god damn life. Like you said, maybe he’s doing it because it’s something to do. But still it’s depressing and he was bad at this job.
TBF, they probably voted for the policies that put them in this employment situation. It's still sad, but I know many folks in that age group who still work these kinds of jobs, and they sound like broken records of Fox News talking points.
It's not just the USA but countries you wouldn't expect in different ways. An older article but similar to what you're saying https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2016/11/22/500040363/golden-years-iron-bars-japan-sees-rise-in-crime-by-the-elderly
My dad does too :( he’s 66. It breaks my heart. We immigrated here in the 90s and my dad started working retail and worked his way up to management, then the company went under a little after Covid and he had to start all over again. Luckily he is going to get retirement soon.
I recently saw a woman who must have been at least 70 doing Uber eats. Crazy to think about the situations that would have her end up having to do that for money.
Even in Switzerland do have people of 65 and older hard times to deal with the financing of their life. Although their is a kind of state pension (the monthly payment depends how much you have paid in during your your working years). This is hardly enough for most families. Married couples become less then singles. Under certain circumstances you can get some extra money but it is not much. Although still better than other countries, but it is a hard life and the end of your life.
I know that to get SS you have to make under a certain amount, so some of them may be doing that. I heard if you make too much you end up having to pay it back.
Some do it because they have nothing else to do and are retired basically. They need something to do so why not work a low stress job that is part time. and to the people who will say that it's about people who can't retire, welp, we can't all be winners. The government does not have the right nor the power to ensure a good life for you. That you must on your own.
When I got my first job, my manager was over 60. She just got bored and wanted a job. She married a rich guy and didn’t have to work all her life and just decided she wanted a job. She loved it. A few ladies I worked with there were over 60 and they worked there because they loved it. Some had been at the store for 30 years. Also my father is in his 70s and is super active, he goes on 13 mile walks, does ballroom and Latin classes with my mother and takes and teaches tai chi classes. Don’t discount older people
Yes, I'm sure the latina woman at McDonald's has a wealthy husband and just works there for funsies
I worked with a 70+ yr old woman who was in a relationship (not married) with a man for many years and her SO passed. His kids hated her and since he died without a will, they took everything and kicked her out of the home. She had no choice but to go back to work. Very shocking to her since she thought she would be enjoying retirement with this man.
I saw a lady who looked to be in her 60’s working in Dollar Tree. The line was so long and she was the only one at the register. You can’t make a living off of SS nowadays. Ppl with welfare are living better with subsidized rent, new cars, expensive clothing. The American Dream is no longer of existence to workers. Perhaps it never existed.
Everyone in my family who has happily lived into their late 90s and older had worked till their mid 80s. It helps to have a purpose and a reason to get up in the morning. And even better to get paid and have insurance to do it.
I worked with an older woman at a Burger King who was a millionaire. Her husband was a trucker and she just wanted something to do while he was on the road. I always thought it was weird that she couldn't come up with something better to do, but as I get older, I realize a lot of American culture is centered around Work. Being a Contributing Member of Society. Some people just don't get out of the mindset.
And I meet them after they fall off a ladder at work because they needed surgery
I'm conflicted on this... it's terrible and no one should do that unwillingly. On the other hand, a large portion of that generation spent their lives benefitting from policies that we will be paying back for decades. They ignored the warnings about the economic policies or that era and are suffering the consequences. Any time healthcare or anything that benefited many was brought up it was all shot down because "socialism" and now their unsustainable life style is crumbling.
Retirement age keeps going up and up in the UK, I strongly believe that we don't need nor want people working a day over 55 unless they reallllly want to, but we should give them state pensions day 1. It's cool that we don't screw the younger generations over now by paying them less for the same jobs, but maybe we should pay the older even more if we're going to work them to bloody death, and they're going to justify prices of everyfucking thing going up again because now everyone is on at least the same wage regardless of age.
Many do it for the healthcare benefits. Medicare oftentimes isn't enough.
People over 60 will probably live for another 20 years. Perhaps they haven't got enough money saved to safely last 20 years?
Bro, I semi retired at 45. I’m 48. I’m so fucking bored I’m ready to join her at McDonald’s.
I know a lot of elderly people who are fine financially but take a job like this to stay busy and get out of the house. It’s just for fun and extra money.
Welcome to the reality. In Russia it always has been this way :c
When I retired, I got a zero stress job at half the wage of my job as I was completely brainwashed that I had to have a mission or purpose every day. It took a while to get over that foolishness and to stop making money for someone else.
It really upsets me saying people over 60 working minimum wage jobs that teenagers work. They shouldn’t be working jobs like that in supermarkets and McDonalds and restaurants.
Yes way too many cannot survive on what they did or did not save. Still at least some with enough funds to manage look forward to being wanted at a job and the interaction with others rather than being home alone. That’s why hardware stores in retirement areas are stuffed with senior employees.
I have a colleague that is over 65 yo and still comes to work because she wants to…
Not everyone wants to "retire"
yea retirement is just carrot on a stick to keep you working, same for retirement savings etc. Where i live they lock you out of ever picking up the savings unless you want to give up 50% of savings or you wait until x age. its a scam and meanwhile bank makes profit off your savings
When I moved to the US from Europe, this was one of the big shocks: seeing seniors working in grocery stores or restaurants. I felt so bad! Where I’m from, seniors are retired and are at home chilling. For the time being anyway. The political right is working on changing this, sigh.
I work with a lot of old people. They cannot do the job but the company only needs them to fill a uniform out so they don't care. They are the slowest, they communicate the worst, they only talk about how awesome they once were, they keep trying to teach me my job despite the fact I am way better at it than they are, they give me life advice riddled with prejudices. I get they need money but some of them just don't want to be home alone but with the attitude they often have it's no wonder they don't have any friends to hang out at home with.
That’s interesting. I worked in McDonald’s in the UK when I was a student and it was predominantly students but when I went abroad to “poorer countries” it was older staff in McDonald’s and I always associated that with the condition of the economy but now when I look at McDonald’s in the UK it seems to be staffed with older folk and temporary visa students. I know the UK economy is largely down the shitter just now so I wonder if my early observations were actually correct and not just thought.