Averaging two retirements a week!

[nogooddeed]

My company has slightly over 1000 employees with most of management in the baby boomer generation.  We had several retirements last year, but so far this year, we're averaging 2 retirements a week.  That's a lot of retirement party cake!  So far, I'm not noticing that baby boomers are hanging on until they die, though I did want to kill one yesterday.  

[Value Buy]

And yet, businesses are not hiring replacements even though everyone Is retiring.........

Maybe baby boomers are irreplaceable after all

[thyme4change]

Are you getting fat from eating all that cake?  I can't resist a good piece of cake.

[Deleted]

My company has that going on- they know that many of us are retiring on the next 10 years and they're ramping up hiring to plan for it. Pretty gutsy of them to hire me at age 59 since I'll be part of that wave leaving the building.

[swamp]

I don't really like cake all that much. I want cheesecake for my retirement party. which I want to be tomorrow.

[movingforward]

Good... get those boomers out of here so the rest of us came move up .  I don't know many boomers that are planning to work until they die.  Most are actually in decent financial shape.  I only know one person in her mid 50's who is in a really bad financial state and most of it is due to her own choices.  I am wondering if once again the media has completely blown things out of proportion in regards to the boomer generation's finances. 

[The Captain]

Mar 7, 2014 10:02:08 GMT -5 @sroo4 said:

My mom's in this wave right now.  She's been consulting on and off for the past 10 years.  I joke that she's probably elongated her working life by taking a few random months off per year since she's been consulting. 

Every time she gets close to retiring,  she will fall into a great contract that pays too well to pass up.   At this point she's working for travel money. 

I sooooo want to be your mom when I grow up.

[nogooddeed]

Mar 7, 2014 9:01:41 GMT -5 thyme4change said:

Are you getting fat from eating all that cake?  I can't resist a good piece of cake.

I love bakery cake!  Sometimes, that's the best part of a wedding/party.  I've gotten spoiled, though.  A family member is a professional baker and very talented.  She makes cakes like you see on the Food Network's cake challenge shows.  The family hates cutting into them, but they sure taste good.

[Deleted]

So far we are counting about 45 retirements scheduled for the end of the fiscal company wide (30,000 employees so small number in comparison)

[reader79]

My mom's retirement becomes official on April 1, she's on leave right now.... and applying for jobs. She has had several people contact her when they heard of her retirement, and the money would be too good to pass up. She is (was?) an assistant principal at an elementary school, and these positions would either be her own school, or consulting at a higher rate - and she was making $92K.

She is turning 62 next week, but will not be applying for SS right away. She will have the pension income, my dad's still working, and no mortgage payment. They are not replacing her position, as the school had two AP's and declining enrollment. A lot of their regular parents are putting the younger kids into charter schools, and transferring the older ones when possible. The charter schools are the ones who are offering her the consulting jobs. 

[tskeeter]

Mar 7, 2014 9:23:38 GMT -5 @athena53 said:

My company has that going on- they know that many of us are retiring on the next 10 years and they're ramping up hiring to plan for it. Pretty gutsy of them to hire me at age 59 since I'll be part of that wave leaving the building.

Maybe they look at it this way.  They hire you, with lots of experience, and you stay until you retire in 8 or 10 years.  They hire a young snot, spend a ton of resources to train and fix the mistakes of the youngster, and about the time the youngster gets pretty good at the job, in two or three years, they bail for more money someplace else.  And then they have to start over with another young snot.  By the time you retire, they'd go through at least three young snots, if they hire well every time.  You're a better choice by a country mile, regardless of how much cheaper it might be to pay the young snot!

[tskeeter]

Mar 7, 2014 9:47:28 GMT -5 movingforward said:

Good... get those boomers out of here so the rest of us came move up .  I don't know many boomers that are planning to work until they die.  Most are actually in decent financial shape.  I only know one person in her mid 50's who is in a really bad financial state and most of it is due to her own choices.  I am wondering if once again the media has completely blown things out of proportion in regards to the boomer generation's finances. 

The media blows things out of proportion in order to make an interesting story out of nothing? 

[cronewitch]

Mar 7, 2014 12:41:35 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

Mar 7, 2014 9:47:28 GMT -5 movingforward said:

Good... get those boomers out of here so the rest of us came move up .  I don't know many boomers that are planning to work until they die.  Most are actually in decent financial shape.  I only know one person in her mid 50's who is in a really bad financial state and most of it is due to her own choices.  I am wondering if once again the media has completely blown things out of proportion in regards to the boomer generation's finances. 

The media blows things out of proportion in order to make an interesting story out of nothing? 

Hard to believe isn't it? Most stories are about how much we have in 401K only not the total plan each of us makes. Some have taxable investment accounts, own a business, rental property, second homes, expected inheritance or something besides SS and 401K. Besides not everyone needs a lot of money to retire especially if they have a pension or other outside income.
One late 50's women I know plans to go live with her daughter, she hasn't told daughter yet. She is saving $50 a month in 401K but gets a small profit sharing some years so could have $30K by retirement. She might snag a new husband, move to low income housing or live with her daughter. She shacked up for years raising her kids and his kids not working much so won't get much SS. Low income housing will take a percent or low amount. Low income housing has shuttles so you don't need a car, she is used to poverty. So worst case is she lives on $800 a month SS paying 400 for rent, 110 for Medicare having 290 for food and wants but a nest egg she can dip into when she needs and she raised five kids who might see she doesn't suffer much, mostly the daughter because her son is supporting their father already and the other three are step kids. Worst case isn't so bad for live long poverty people.

[tskeeter]

Mar 7, 2014 15:35:36 GMT -5 cronewitch said:

Mar 7, 2014 12:41:35 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

The media blows things out of proportion in order to make an interesting story out of nothing? 

Hard to believe isn't it? Most stories are about how much we have in 401K only not the total plan each of us makes. Some have taxable investment accounts, own a business, rental property, second homes, expected inheritance or something besides SS and 401K. Besides not everyone needs a lot of money to retire especially if they have a pension or other outside income.
One late 50's women I know plans to go live with her daughter, she hasn't told daughter yet. She is saving $50 a month in 401K but gets a small profit sharing some years so could have $30K by retirement. She might snag a new husband, move to low income housing or live with her daughter. She shacked up for years raising her kids and his kids not working much so won't get much SS. Low income housing will take a percent or low amount. Low income housing has shuttles so you don't need a car, she is used to poverty. So worst case is she lives on $800 a month SS paying 400 for rent, 110 for Medicare having 290 for food and wants but a nest egg she can dip into when she needs and she raised five kids who might see she doesn't suffer much, mostly the daughter because her son is supporting their father already and the other three are step kids. Worst case isn't so bad for live long poverty people.

Do I have this right?  Her retirement plan is to be a burden to her children and to the taxpayers?

[NoNamePerson]

Mar 7, 2014 9:25:13 GMT -5 swamp said:

I don't really like cake all that much. I want cheesecake for my retirement party. which I want to be tomorrow.

Me either so I will settle for the icing/frosting and a fork 

[Deleted]

Mar 7, 2014 12:39:59 GMT -5 tskeeter said:

Maybe they look at it this way.  They hire you, with lots of experience, and you stay until you retire in 8 or 10 years.  They hire a young snot, spend a ton of resources to train and fix the mistakes of the youngster, and about the time the youngster gets pretty good at the job, in two or three years, they bail for more money someplace else.  And then they have to start over with another young snot.  By the time you retire, they'd go through at least three young snots, if they hire well every time.  You're a better choice by a country mile, regardless of how much cheaper it might be to pay the young snot!

My employer is different- they give you a Rolex after you've been there for 10 years. We do have turnover but it's pretty low. The people who work here are generally very happy to have made the cut and gotten a job with this company. I'm getting paid a lot more than the young snots are and my job description is to teach them what I know and get out of their way, which I plan to do in 4 years.

I certainly agree that that's how employers should be viewing older applicants, but in most companies people over 50 can't even get in the door for an interview.

ETA a few more thoughts:  I find that I can work longer hours because I'm not schlepping kids to and from daycare and if I'm home by 6:30 (typically in office at 7:45, leave at 6)  that's fine because DH is making dinner.  My younger coworkers are fantastic people but they have family responsibilities I don't.  I've been there so I can support them.  I've been with the company 1.5 years and have had one sick day- for dental surgery under general anaesthetic.  I worked from home after the anaesthetic wore off.  And I'm not alone- the people who bring in the business for our company include a lot of over-60s.  Given what they must be making (I hear it's the 7-figure range but it's straight commission so there's a lot of risk involved) I can't believe they need the work.  I think they just like it.  We do have a lot of younger people in their ranks, though.

[Phoenix84]

There are quite a few vacancies at my agency they aren't filling, and many of the employees/scientists are old. Not hiring may hurt them in the long run. I noticed a major "gap" in age and experience when I worked for the shipyard. You either had 50+ year olds or 25 year olds, very few in between. A lot of knowledge was walking out the door, and they didn't do a really good job of succession planning and getting people the experience they needed. I think my agency now is making the same mistake.

It's just weird. Like the federal government will need to replace at least 50% of it's workforce in the next 15-20 years or so.

[Cookies Galore]

My mom hates her job (left an okay job to live in a shit area to be closer to her grandkids and works in a pharmacy) so she's planning on quitting and "retiring" at the end of the year. She will be 62 in August, has no savings, supports my brother, and will get a whopping $1041 a month based on her own SS wages. I hope my sister enjoys her new household resident! Because you know that will be happening!

[vonna]

Mar 8, 2014 16:03:10 GMT -5 Cookies Galore said:

My mom hates her job (left an okay job to live in a shit area to be closer to her grandkids and works in a pharmacy) so she's planning on quitting and "retiring" at the end of the year. She will be 62 in August, has no savings, supports my brother, and will get a whopping $1041 a month based on her own SS wages. I hope my sister enjoys her new household resident! Because you know that will be happening!

Yikes! Are you sure she won't decide to move in with you?

[Cookies Galore]

Mar 8, 2014 16:19:29 GMT -5 vonna said:

Mar 8, 2014 16:03:10 GMT -5 Cookies Galore said:

My mom hates her job (left an okay job to live in a shit area to be closer to her grandkids and works in a pharmacy) so she's planning on quitting and "retiring" at the end of the year. She will be 62 in August, has no savings, supports my brother, and will get a whopping $1041 a month based on her own SS wages. I hope my sister enjoys her new household resident! Because you know that will be happening!

Yikes! Are you sure she won't decide to move in with you?

Hubs and I live in a one-bedroom apartment. Booya!

Sister knows mom is her problem. She made the dumb decision to move closer to the grandkids and left a job paying $45,000 with benefits (the most she's ever made in her life). She now makes $14 an hour (up from $10 an hour when she finally found a job after moving up there - she didn't search for a job before deciding to move) and has no benefits.

Mom is not one to make good decisions.

[Deleted]

Mar 8, 2014 17:15:01 GMT -5 Cookies Galore said:

Mar 8, 2014 16:19:29 GMT -5 vonna said:

Yikes! Are you sure she won't decide to move in with you?

Hubs and I live in a one-bedroom apartment. Booya!

Smart choice