Most people dream of becoming financially successful enough that they can retire peacefully and live a productive life as seniors. But with the repercussions of the pandemic, including inflation putting a strain on the wallets of so many folks, this demographic that already retired has been forced to “unretire”.
There are many reasons for senior citizens to go back to work, and they aren’t all such a bad thing. Some people just enjoy the productivity of going to a job. Others may need health insurance benefits.
Whether you need income or want to create savings, there are a variety of reasons why people are going back to work after retirement.
We’ll also talk about senior car insurance discounts and how becoming older can benefit you when shopping for things like insurance. Seniors need to be rewarded with some of these monetary breaks, especially if they have to go back to work when they thought they were done with that part of life.
#1 – Older People Want to Feel Productive
It’s not uncommon for people to draw a lot of their value in life from their careers. We pour so much of our personalities into our jobs. Adults ask kids what they want to be when they grow up, starting the trend from a young age that your occupation is the point of pride and self-esteem.
This means that many older people may decide to go back to work after they retire because they can’t feel productive without their job. There are a lot of things like family, friends, and relaxation that can be enough for some people to be satisfied with when they are retired, but this certainly doesn’t apply to everybody.
A great way to reinvigorate yourself when you unretire is to change your career so that it can help you build your wealth. Draw on the skills you learned throughout your life at other jobs, and show people that you can change course and be versatile.
The pandemic made this a requirement for many people no matter their age. So many jobs were lost throughout the last two and a half years, and it required perseverance and confidence to find something new and exciting to support a family.
Older people may worry they can’t find other work because senior citizens are often discriminated against for their age in the corporate world. You can always try to hire an attorney if you feel you have been discriminated against for your age and forced to retire.
#2 – Health Insurance and Other Benefits
Older people need to think about how they are going to pay for their medical expenses if they have any health issues, and retirement presents some challenges in that area. Medicare or Medicaid is a good place for retirees to start, but some still don’t qualify depending on their income and the tax bracket they fit into.
Going back to work is an easy way to get benefits instead of searching for health insurance on the marketplace. This is the only reason why a lot of retired people return to the workplace.
Some of the jobs that are the easiest to return to for health benefits are government jobs. If you were a teacher, for example, substitute teaching is always a great option for those who want to return to the classroom and get medical benefits from the government.
#3 – Helping Kids and Grandkids
The pandemic created a lot of financial strain on families, and older folks have taken the responsibility of helping out their adult children with money problems. If grandchildren are involved it becomes even more enticing to go back to work to make sure that the little ones have the funds to eat, have clothing, and enjoy life with some toys and video games.
This isn’t to say that seniors are going back to work to support families all over again. It just means that if their adult children are experiencing hardship trying to raise their kids, then older folks are often ready to help out in this area, especially if you were able to manage your finances well.
Some families are closer than others. Many retirees may not feel it is their responsibility to help bring in money for their adult kids or their grandkids, but it’s certainly something that ties back into the previous discussion on feeling like you have a purpose.
When seniors have an empty nest, going back to work and helping their families makes them feel good about themselves.
#4 – Auto Insurance Discounts
When you decide to unretire, you might realize that you have to drive a lot more than you did when you were sitting at home. This depends on whether you are doing a remote job or an in-person occupation. Either way, seniors can get a variety of discounts on their car insurance depending on several factors.
If you are unretiring but working remotely, make sure you let your insurance company know that you don’t commute to work anymore. If you already did this during retirement, you may be able to skip this step.
You want to see if you can get a driving-for-pleasure policy rather than a traditional one, as many insurance companies give huge discounts to those who only drive once in a while instead of every day for their work.
Seniors often reach a point where they have to put up with increasing rates even if they have a clean driving record. This is because there are some generalizations about the abilities of older people to maintain their driving skills. Bad eyesight, poor reaction times, and not being knowledgeable about the technology in newer cars could make it harder for seniors to drive.
If you are over 65 years old and you are going to be driving to work again, you should enroll in a defensive driving course. This could get you discounts on your insurance, and it will help you tune up on your driving abilities before driving becomes a major part of your life again.
Getting older often means getting to retire, but the current economic situation in the U.S. has altered this for many seniors. It doesn’t have to be such a burden to go back to work, though. With added health benefits, discounts on car insurance, and the confidence that being back in the workplace gives you, there are many good things about unretiring.
Shawn Laib writes and researches for the insurance comparison site, ExpertInsuranceReviews.com. He wants to help seniors decide whether going back to work is right for them.
