JUST ONE IN five adults expect to fully retire and stop working in the traditional manner, according to new research from Irish Life.
The Life100+ report is based on nationally representative research among over 2,000 adults and examines how the prospect of significantly longer lives will change working life, retirement planning, health and family finances.
The report found that there is broad acceptance that longer lives will mean longer working lives, with around three quarters (74%) of respondents believing they will need to work for longer to support themselves in later life
While 19% of adults expect to fully stop working at retirement, some 27% expect to gradually reduce their working hours, while just under a quarter (24%) expect to continue working part-time.
Among those aged 65 and over, the preference for a phased retirement is stronger.
For those already working past the State Pension age of 66, the leading reasons are enjoyment of work (58%) and staying mentally and physically active (56%).
Adults who have yet to retire estimate they will need an average pension pot of €315,000 for a “comfortable retirement”, against average current retirement savings of €102,000.
Only one in three adults said they feel confident that they can financially sustain a longer life. This falls to just under a quarter (24%) among those aged 55 to 64.
On how to fund a longer life, half of respondents (51%) said they would put more into savings and one in five (21%) said they would put more into investments.
Just a quarter of people said they would definitely want to live to 100, with concerns focused on failing health (41%), loss of physical abilities (36%) and loss of mental abilities (32%), well ahead of running out of money (20%).
“Ireland is moving from a society built around an 80 year life to one that must begin to plan for a 100 year life,” Irish Life chief executive Declan Bolger said.
He said the report “provides the clearest evidence yet that longevity is reshaping how people in Ireland intend to work, save and live”, adding that expectations have already moved ahead of the structures around them.
“People have accepted longer working lives and a later, more gradual retirement, but confidence in funding those additional years is low, particularly amongst those closest to retirement.”
Bolger added that closing the gap between people’s valid expectations about their working lives and the capability of the work environment to support them “is a national priority”.
“It will require workplace practices and benefits, pensions, health cover and financial advice to be considered together as priorities for most people who plan on working and living longer.”