The ‘baby boomers’ are ideal candidates for extended working due to better health and less physically-demanding employment than previous cohorts This study investigated how circumstances across the life course influence retirement decisions and what it means to have an extended working life in a UK ‘baby boom’ birth cohort, born in 1947 (n=1142). Mixed-methods were used: prospective quantitative survey data provides evidence on earlier-life predictors of employment at ages 62–64; qualitative data from in-depth interviews (n=28) with a cohort sub-sample explore the ‘messy realities’ of the decision to retire or remain in employment. We found that socio-economic characteristics throughout the life course influenced retirement decisions and our interviews shed light on inequalities arising from freely-chosen extended employment as part of active ageing and involuntary extended employment (or unemployment) among those without the means to choose. The extending working lives agenda risks amplifying inequalities in later life.
展开▼
