Australian women still working at 60 plus
Australian women are keener than ever to hold onto their jobs and nearly half of them are planning to work until they turn at least 65.
The latest Bureau of Statistics figures show that discrimination against older workers is fading and Australians are putting off retiring and having their working lives extend well into their 60s.
The biggest shift in retirement movements is with women. Those who have already retired did so at an average of 48 but those who retired in the past five years did so at 59, and those considering retirement now on average plan to do so at 62.
As well, of the 1.7 million women aged 45 and over who are still working, less than half actually have a retirement age in mind. The bureau found that 140,000 or 8% aim to never retire, 9% were unsure about retirement, and 38% said they didn’t know when they would retire.
The figures for men and women found that the average retired Australian finished at 52, those who retired in the past five years quit at 60, and those looking ahead on average planned to retire at 63. Among men 36% who retired before 65 did so because of illness, injury, or disability, and 17% were retrenched or lost their jobs in other ways.
