The reason Americans shouldn’t expect a ton of jobs to become available in the near future? The answer may be hiding in your company’s retirement plan.
A lack of savings has caused nearly a quarter (24%) of U.S. workers to make the decision to postpone their retirement in the past year, according to a recent study conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and Mathew Greenwald and Associates, Inc., a market research company.
And as more employees extend their careers, there’ll be fewer job openings, say EBRI analysts.
According to the research, the percentage of workers expecting to retire after age 65 is increasing — from 11% in 1991 to 14% in 1995, 19% in 2000, 24% in 2005, all the way up to 33% today.
The top reasons workers gave for having to push back retirement:
- The slow economy
- A change in employment status
- Inadequate finances, and
- To make up for losses in the stock market.
Perhaps even more troubling is just how few workers there are out there that are confident in their ability to retire comfortably — only 16% believe they’ll have enough money for a comfortable retirement. That’s only marginally higher than the 20-year low of 13% who felt that way last year.
In addition, only 29% say they are confident they’ll have enough money to pay for just basic expenses in retirement.
Sure, the numbers are scary. But there’s a way to spin this to employers’ advantage: Let your workers know you’ve heard their concerns and you’re here to help — with investment advice, matching 401(k) contributions, etc.
