I was reminded recently of how people seem to be living longer or at least working until later in life these days. I remember when I was a child in the early 1970s in my local neighbourhood it was not unusual to see people in their 60s walking around very slowly and acting like invalids. These days it’s not unusual to see people in their 60s or older still in employment.

Maybe I’m trying to make myself feel better about turning 48 this year and still being a university student. But I think the the observation is still valid. It could be because society knows more about health these days (although the obesity epidemic would counter that argument). Then again we are just getting over the recent Global Financial Crisis so I think more and more people are being forced to worked until later in life simply because of that.

I think it’s both of your observations:  better health care, and a need to continue working because of financial necessity and emotional need or desire. 

But the first is probably the first reason there is a difference in what we perceived as ‘elderly’ 3 and 4 decades ago and how it is perceived today.  My generation seemed to be pressed by ideals even when we were still in our teens, rebels and unaccepting of many things.  Aging gracefully is now a concept we refuse to accept on the same levels our grandparents and parents did. 

There are a number of us who have been eased into retirement not of our own volition but because of the needs of a younger work force.  Our presence does cause health insurance premiums to rise for all other employees once we reach the age of 50.  I have a feeling that if health continues to improve past that age, a number of other changes will be made.  One of those will be to raise the retirement age and also the age where pensions can be collected.

So, these observations are both good and difficult for those who DO in fact need to retire but then cannot.

Well, overall people are in better health physically and mentally at older age than they were in previous generations.  Which means that more people are physically and mentally able to perform work at more advanced age.  At the same time, because people are living longer they need to make their savings last longer to cover those extra years. . .and the cost of all the medical and nutritional advances that have helped them to be the way that they are.  So I expect that some people who would normally be considered of retirement age are working still to be sure they have money for when they do stop working.