How Covid rewrote employees' retirement plans

The pandemic has affected people’s retirement plans in different ways, research from WEALTH at work has found.

More than a fifth (22%) of workers approaching retirement (age 50+) say it has made them want to retire earlier and as soon as they can. Surprisingly, 13% want to delay retirement because they have realised they enjoy working. However, just over one in ten (11%) have had to delay retirement as they can no longer afford to retire.

Retirement planning

Some have been given a new perspective on life and can’t wait to retire. Others have realised that they enjoy working and aren’t ready to give it up.

There are also those who have to work longer due to affordability, perhaps as a result of their savings taking a hit due to reduced household income or a fall in the value of their pensions and investments.

Employer support

This uncertainty can make retirement planning very challenging. What is certain is the more you plan for retirement and review your plans as your circumstances change, the more likely that you will be able to deal with all eventualities. Whether that is realising that you can’t yet afford to retire so have to work for longer, or even that retirement is more affordable than you thought.

Many organisations recognise that their employees will need help with their retirement planning, especially through this difficult period and are putting support in place.

The research of 1,320 UK adults aged 50+ in employment was carried out by Vital Research between 20th May and 4th June 2021.

The author is Jonathan Watts-Lay, WEALTH at work director.

This article is provided by WEALTH at work.