To feel sorry for women having to work till they're 66

[lazylab]

I have 2 friends, one 60 the other 61 who are just so tired and worn out. The 60 year old works full time in a factory, she's totally shatttered at the end of her shift. Basically they're just desperate for retirement, but no chance of that till they're 66. Both these women are single, still paying mortgages, one of them earning fairly good money but the other is basically working just to live, can't afford luxuries or holidays etc. It's just soul destroying. These are just two examples of the plight of those affected by the changes to pension age.

Working full time as a young woman is definitely not the same once you hit 60, the body struggles to cope. I realise it's the same for men too, especially the ones doing physical jobs.
Sorry if it sounds like i'm moaning, but isn't life just shit for some people.

[stumblymonkeyagain]

I was going to say my Gran is mid-70s and works 3 days a week on a market stall where she gets to sit and read a book between customers.

[OlennasWimple]

I'm 40 and assume that I have got at least another 30 years of work ahead of me. In some ways that's quite liberating (I can afford to go slow in my career at times because I know I have longer to get there in the end, for example), and I'm desperately hoping that when I am older part-time work will be de-stigmatised and properly valued so that I can move into those sorts of roles if I need to scale back, without feeling like I'm marking time until retirement. To that end, the recent changes to my (public sector) pension scheme to move to a career average rather than final salary scheme are helpful, in that final salary schemes encourage workers to stay in the most rewarding (and therefore gruelling) roles right until the end. On the other hand, some of the other changes brought in mean that my careful financial planning to buy extra years have been a very expensive mistake...

[sysysysref]

I don't think that that we should expect to live for 20 year post retirement and be subsidised. This is the magic money tree. We get free university, we get a £10 minimum wage and then we get to retire at 60. How is it going to be paid for?
People are living longer and generally in better health. There are exceptions to this but most people at 60 and 65 are still young nowadays and perfectly capable of working. Yes they might be fed up with it and a bit more tired but we need to get a grip. If we are well enough and fit enough then there's no reason not to work. My parents are in their late 60's and my mum has retired. Well, I say retired but she works 2 days a week at the CAB, she does 2 days a week of consultancy and one day a week in her old job. My dad is slowing down now, but still working full time in central london 5 days a week, he's 68. He's looking at retiring in a couple of years but only if he can keep his main clients on and do a few days a week of business development for his firm. He's also involved with local governement and is hoping for another 15 years of active life. If you're in sound health, and the majority of 65 year olds are then I can't see a problem working in most jobs.

[Maxandrubyrubyandmax]

I think people are going to have to learn to take a bit of a different view going forward. The current retirees have got it the best they are ever going to get it! I think we will have to accept that it's likely to be more of a wind down once kids have grown and mortgages paid. Moving to part time work. Living off equity. Most private pensions now are worth jack shit tbh and likely to pay out little more than pin money. I plan to go back to work Ft between mid 40s to mid 50's to save like mad. Then work part time for a long as I can. Use inheritance to put towards small flat in much cheaper part of uk to use as holiday home/semi retirement property the. Sell current house when I can move away from work.

[morningtoncrescent62]

I've seen it predicted that few people will get the full amount for one reason or other.

I keep trying to quantify exactly what difference having been on a contracted-out scheme will make to what I'll eventually get under the new state pension. I've been paying NI contributions for about 25 years, of which around 15 were contracted-out, so the rate was lower. I anticipate getting to at least 35 years by the time I retire, and I know that under new state pension rules I'll get a reduced amount for the contracted-out years. But I've no idea what it will be and I can't find it out anywhere - websites just say it's a reduced rate. I'm also not close enough to retirement to get a state pension forecast yet, so that doesn't help. For my own peace of mind, I'd really like to know. My state pension age is 67 and I'm saving hard in the hope that I'll be able to choose to go three or four years earlier than that, but any such hopes will be scuppered if the rate for the contracted-out years is really low.

[phoenix1973]

It makes me feel so much more equal to know that women and men must suffer equally in working until 66. Gotta love equality. 🙄

[Babbitywabbit]

Similar to maxandruby. Worked full time pre children, dropped to 3 days when children were pre school, and stepped back up to full time the day my youngest started reception class. I'm now in my 50s and will be in a position to drop to part time soon. I fully expect to remain working part time hours in some capacity until probably my late 60s... I see no reason not to; I have professional qualifications which I can usefully put into practice. I want a good balance in my life but I don't think that means stopping work completely... you hear of a lot of people who decline physically and mentally when they give up work completely.

I just don't think it's realistic to expect to be able to retire earlier if you've had years out of the workplace or working part time. That's true of many women my age, let alone younger generations. As others have said, life is different now; people live longer and gold plated pensions to last you 30+ years of retirement just aren't viable

[MissSueFlay]

DD is 5 and I started a pension for her this year - a SIPP. I'm only paying in £24 per month (bumped up to £30 with the tax claimed back). She can take it over when she's 18 and add to it herself, and growing up I will make sure she knows it's there & what it's for, separate to other savings.

My hope is that a personal pension started off so young will give her more options when she's 50+, like going part-time and not having to work until she drops. But I suspect an awful lot is going to happen in the next 45 or so years...!

[mossflox]

We may be living longer compared to previous generations but that doesn't mean we are necessarily healthier or that we will continue to live even longer than before. 58% of men and 68% of women in the UK are either overweight or obese and the number of people diagnosed with diabetes has more than doubled in the last 20 years (currently 3.5 million adults).

[makeourfuture]

DD is 5 and I started a pension for her this year - a SIPP. I'm only paying in £24 per month (bumped up to £30 with the tax claimed back). She can take it over when she's 18 and add to it herself, and growing up I will make sure she knows it's there & what it's for, separate to other savings.

Can she access to buy a home? University fees?

[TittyGolightly]

A SIPP can only be accessed at retirement.

[TalkinPeece]

Setting up a SIPP for a child seems barking to me.
ISAs, premium bonds, step saver accounts all seem much saner.
Poor kid will see a pot of money that they cannot touch till they are in their late 50's
whereas it is early 30s that most families are desperate for cash.

[makeourfuture]

whereas it is early 30s that most families are desperate for cash.

Well yes. Isn't housing the biggest thing?

[MissSueFlay]

DD also has a S&S ISA which family contribute for birthday etc. She will get that when she's 18.

I wouldn't do a SIPP as the only investment for a child for sure, but to get it started off so early even with such small contributions, means compounded interest will have a chance to really build up. It will also drive home the point that from the beginning she should be thinking about contributions from her own wages when she gets to that point. Without any compounded interest, my contributions, if I keep them at the level they are currently, will be £6.5k by the time she's 18.

On the contrary, I don't think she will be a 'poor kid' at all.

[ihatethecold]

I think it's a great idea to start a pension off for your kids if it's affordable.
We are going to transfer the kids CTF into LISA's soon to help them on the housing ladder but I'm considering starting a pension for them

[HelenaDove]

sheephead those changes coming will be likely to affect people who could be caring for older partners.

[limon]

Ill be 70 when I retire.

I am knackered at 49.

[Floisme]

I agree with moss and I think we should be careful not to confuse living longer with staying healthy longer. This is anecdotal but it wouldn't surprise me if 1 in 5 of my friends in their 60s have some kind of chronic or serious health condition (e.g. diabetes, heart condition, respiratory condition, arthritis, chronic pain, cancer). My own health is good so far but, since hitting 60, I feel like I'm playing the health lottery and that the odds are shortening.

Unless there are some pretty amazing medical breakthroughs coming along then I'm really not sure if it's realistic to assume you'll be able to work full time into your 70s. I think people are being conned.

[Dinkyboy63]

Lots of people saying that pension ages are just wrong and a struggle for many of us. Why do we think it's a given? Surely we need to make it an election issue and vote out any party wanting to continue this obscene injustice. Men and women should have the same state pension age and it shouldn't be over 65 for anyone.

[PurpleTigerLove]

People are living longer so will have to work longer . My dad is 75 and working fulltime as a farmer . I dread to think how many hours he does a day never mind a week . He just gets on with it as apparently farmers don’t retire they die . I do think work keeps him healthy in mind and body . Retiring and siting around for 20 odd years is a relatively new idea I should imagine .

[serbska]

It’s unfortunate but we need to take the tough parts of equality with the smooth.

Women really really REALLY need to consider their long term financial position and pension regarding extended ML, going PT or taking a career break to bring up their children.

I don’t expect to be doing my exact job at 70, hopefully by late-fifties I can go PT.

[Ch33secake17]

My current state pension age is 68, but I anticipate that it will probably increase to 70. I have paid into a private pension, so I hope that I may be able to retire a little early. However, the average life expectancy is 80 and will probably increase. I hope to continue to have good health, although this is not guaranteed. We all need to work longer

[longwayoff]

Don't feel sorty, feel angry. This is an absolute bloody disgrace.

[MrsStrowman]

This is why we should all make provision for retirement early in life, even if you pay a very small amount into a private pension or other investment from your early twenties, you'll have more options later on, make the choice between nights out, cars, holidays, cigarettes etc. I say this in my early thirties, when people have told me for the last ten years I've got plenty of time for pensions etc, I'm hoping not to have to work into my seventies as a lot of my generation will. My parents both have always had fairly low paying jobs, but both are able to retire before state pension because they've saved and saved and saved, they also paid off their mortgage which reduces outgoings, something people who say renting is a better option and less of a burden should consider.

[longwayoff]

I'll consider my working life equal to a man's when one gives birth to 3 kids, gets them through all childhood and adolescent illnesses/ problems / school/ he without taking a day off work and does it without a partner or anyone at home to help out, often working with serious health problems such as breast and womb cancers. Good luck. Give women their pensions back. We paid for them under terms that have been subsequently changed.