Who are all these ‘economically inactive’ 50 year olds

[Orangetapemeasure]

The government is trying to encourage 300000 or so ‘economically inactive’ 50+ year olds back to work. Who are these people and what do they do?
I can imagine some people in their 60s deciding to retire early, but I don’t know a single 50 year old who has or could afford to give up work. In fact I know several previously SAHM who are only launching their careers in their mid 40s. I’m mid 40s with a good 15-20 years left to work.
MN please enlighten me.

Lots of people do volunteering for charities, look after children/grandchildren/older relatives. They ,would be employed if doing these jobs was valued by the government. But instead of paying people a good salary to do these things the government relies on people working for free to look after the young, old and vulnerable!

Babooshka1990 · Today 09:39
@RRRException most people get a loan for Uni

You have a lot to learn about uni funding, we waited to retire until DC3 left university as it was costing us over 6k per child per year.

Mid-50s women I know who don’t work are all putting in serious time cari g for grandchildren so their daughters can keep their careers

TobeLeRone · Today 09:48
Not rtft but are they really economically inactive?
Unless they’re all living off grid and growing their own food and harvesting rays of Sun then they are surely very much economically active?

Good point my DH pay more tax than the average working couple and spend a lot too plus aren’t using the education system and have private health.

This with bells on !

I know a lot of teachers who retired in their 50s. Some do tutoring or bits of supply to get some money in. I assume they don’t have mortgages and live frugally.

This illustrates point re age you had them and how many quite well for eg my youngest likely won’t be finished at Uni until I’m 62

Did your MIL manage to get back into work? I do hope so 😊

I'm mid fifties - work very part time and could even give that up if needed. Mortgage paid off so living costs are minimal. Have savings and money for if DD goes to uni. We don't really have expensive tastes or go on big holidays, don't have a car.

Made a lot of very emotionally hard decisions a few years back to move out of London/sell family home post divorce- tore me up at the time but has really made me and DD financially secure, we are seeing the benefits now even with higher cost of living. Very small NHS pension that will kick in at 60 - original 1995 pension, with an ok lump sum.

I realise how fortunate I now am. I could well choose to become economically inactive in the next few years - my health is still good so I want to have some adventures.

I am 54, wish I could retire as menopause and working is tough.

A few colleagues around my age have retired in the last couple of years, my brother and one SIL retired early/mid 50s too. I am hopefully on track to retire at 60, but wish I had put more thought into retirement planning earlier, as I could probably have done now if I had.

Puttingdownroots Same happened to my friend.Worked for 15 years and made redundant .Needs a GCSE English and Maths .Difficult to get another job as late 40s and needs to gain qualifications before she can get a new post

I know someone who had retiring at 50 as a very clear goal. No children, has a small house with no flash home improvements, cheap car. She saved and planned it so that she and her husband could spend their life travelling and generally enjoying themselves.

I will be one of them.

I’m mid-40s and planning on getting out of teaching at 50. I may work, may not. I can’t claim my pension until 67 (or higher as teacher’s pensions are now linked to state pension age) but our mortgage will be paid off. Have been saving the DC’s child benefit since birth so that takes the stress off finding Uni fees for example.

Maybe if I had another career I would continue to work but I’ve been teaching 23 years now, I don’t want to another 23.

I think this thread has really laid bare what a divided country we are, with a clear split between the haves and the have-nots.

It's not as clear as you think

There are those who have because they have and want very little and those who have not because they want more than those who "have"

But inheritance is a great divider - with the younger generation inheriting is the most likely way to get their own home.

I had originally hoped to become economically inactive in my 50s but working partbtime due to kids then ill health has put paid to that tbh. So I plod on as long as possible.
But if I wasnt working - what the Tories want would be of absolutely no concern to me at all. Most of them are living the life of a king on the tax payer pound - so I think they've got a massive cheek to expect people whose actually worked for a living to get back to work!

It is divided, but I can say that my husband worked for every bit of his good job and salary. His dad died before he started uni and his mum had many, many mental health issues. He was made homeless while at uni too. It was hardly an easy ride.

It'll be more over 55s than over 50s. The Tories introduced a policy allowing people to access their private pensions at aged 55, and are now unhappy because some of them decided to do it.

I'm 60, don't want to ever retire and go to Download amongst other Festivals 😊😊

Me! I'm 57, I worked part time in a min wage admin role; got furloughed during Covid and never went back. I've worked since I was 17, in retail & factory work, low paid, tiring, public facing, by the time covid hit I'd had enough. I had side projects at the same time ( spinal problems meant I struggled to do more than a few hours a week in a regular job) so I made my side income my priority. I've built up my income from it, and while I don't earn enough to pay tax yet, it gives me an income ( more than my admin job did). Also took a couple of small private pensions at 55, and I've got the full state pension to come. DH has a good job and pensions to come so we are quite comfortable. I won't go back to working for other people; when I was looking for work in my late 40s I couldn't get arrested. Most employers seemed to want youngsters they could pay minimum wage.

@LadyAstor you're absolutely right there.

Also the difference between people who are financially aware and good financial planning early on which so many people don't do through no fault of their own. It should be part of compulsory education.

@RRRException I agree with your points regarding the factors affecting when people can retire.

I was thinking I must be weird for not really wanting to retire for quite some time. I had a long time out of the workforce after having DCs although I was seriously ill for much of that time, but once I was better, I was essentially retired from age 43 to 48.

I've been working for 5 years now but deliberately only ever in low stress admin work so feel I can easily carry on for quite some time, especially as DCs are older teens and very independent.

@LadyAstor I mean there's definitely some truth in what you say.

I don't come from money - parents often struggled to keep head above water financially when I was young.

Much of my financial security is situational/generational - as Gen x in London in the early 90's, absolute bottom of the last recession I could afford to buy a large flat on a single nurses salary. Secure work as a nurse so never struggling for work. No fees for higher education. That has been the basis of everything for me.

I am 59 and gave up work when I was 57. This was due to mental and physical health deteriorating making it impossible for me to work. I claimed my work pension so I had some income of my own, so I cannot claim benefits (fair) but I also don't work, so would be classed as economically inactive, but if I claimed benefits I wouldn't be, I don't think.

It might seem selfish but look at it this way.
We passed the exams, we worked our way up, we invested and invested our money, therefore we decide what to do with it.
The people who are happy to share our money didn't help us do any of it so they don't get to spend it. Nothing unfair about it.

I reckon they fall into four categories:

1 - burnt-out teachers & HCP's who have had enough, and who have built up a decent enough pension to live on.
2 - the rich.
3 - all the people who have become carers for frail elderly relatives, or who look after young grandchildren so both parents can work.
4 - those who have had to give up work due to their own health issues or disability.

To be honest, none of them are likely to be persuaded to re-enter the workforce.