Lots of people 55-65 years old forced to retire early (you?) (supplement, move)
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My dh was Laid off and then amazingly the position was opened back up to someone 30 years younger a month later. He discovered after the fact that he was the highest paid manager at his level, so he was downsized and replaced with a cheaper alternative.
Location: We_tside PNW (Columbia Gorge) / CO / SA TX / Thailand
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Originally Posted by Good Point
I have recently participated in the number of interview panels ... So much bitterness and anger ... Tell us your story.
Bitter? I was ushered out at age 49 w/ 32 yrs service, 6 wks before retirement eligibility (no Healthcare. no Pension)
Evil short term 'outsider' CEO (Medieval History grad playing RISK with 300,000 employee (previous) engineering company... )
Company for 60 yrs WAS one of the previously most respected companies in USA (with very innovative HR / flex time / profit sharing / paid time for community service pioneer).
Life goes on. Earnings? Have been all time highs (more time for real estate / stock market) during the final yrs of Bush tax cuts, All time lows (Good time to re-characterize Traditional IRA into ROTH)
I went back to same company a few yrs ago and got my 6 weeks vacation (but no retirement / HC eligibility)+ an international assignment to get travel perks. Biggest benefit was qualifying and purchasing over $1m in extra RE income props to cover new HC premiums (1000% higher) and 1000% increases in property taxes since my 'retirement'.
But, I'm now 'history' / unemployed / re-retired again.
Next yr... RTW trip for one yr to burn up travel perks. (before I croak) Still WAY under SS / medicare age. Thus 'un-insured' as is much of early 'retired' USA citizens. (That is what Medi-vacations are for).
I have had 3 'early retiree' / early laid-off friends die due to no medical insurance. (after they lost their homes and investments to medical expenses). They had little desire to continue to live / endure USA medical treatments when the same medical industry had taken all their lifelong earned assets..
Fun!
Retire early, retire often!
Most important for those with a 'bitter pill'... get out and help others. You will find you are not so bad off.
I turned 65 in September, and am supposed to advance from temp to perm next week at my present job (second time for that advancement, BTW) Since ending an 18-year stint with one employer in 1995, I've had six full-time employers and at least twice that many "fill-in" positions, courtesy of the 2008 Great Recession. It's not easy, but I always seem able to find something ... and it beats watching the paint peel.
None of the candidates who were 55-65 were hired because the hiring committee thought they were too old but of course they used code when stating this.
Dh went out at 62 because of hip gone bad, he could not do the heavy work as a master auto tech anymore. He was there for 12 years.
The company laid off his BFF a year later, they kept all the B level guys (cheaper) and got rid of the service manager. The place is barely staying afloat.
We moved all his tools, sold half of them on ebay and never looked back. Luckily he saw the writing on the wall and downsized his huge condo sized tool box to two smaller ones that were easier to move.
Years ago, there were Robber Barons, very dangerous working conditions, extremes of child labor, and many other issues where employers exploited workers. Labor unions were born, and successfully worked to improve the situation. Shorter work weeks, vacation, employee benefits and labor laws were the result, and for most workers, the work experience became something to look forward to. Over the years, with the emergence of the high tech and service economies, which require many white collar and knowledge workers, it seemed we did not need unions all that much. Companies would compete for workers, and seemed to understand the long term positives of treating people with respect. The cost to replace a worker is much higher than the cost of retaining one. And there is the good karma factor as well. Even smokestack industries and more traditional blue collar industries seemed to catch on. The peak of this was the period 1970 - 2000. All was good. Then, the SHTF and simultaneously, we globalized and commoditized our labor markets. Suddenly, I find myself, in spite of having been very anti-union a mere 10 years ago, wondering a bit about whether or not we need to grow the union movement again, and even consider unionizing some of the professions which did not appear to have a role for unions a few years ago.
I wasn't "forced" to retire technically, but the realities of the changing workplace (television) made it impossible for me to stay because the job that I had trained for ceased to exist. Automation rendered me obsolete. The work that had once been done by a technical crew of seven people and a director became one person - the director - ...
My best friend from highschool had a good career as a movie theater video/sound tech. For the first couple decades he had a region of theaters that he serviced. Then as they began shifting to digital, he got the certs and UA loved him. He traveled all around converting theaters from film to digital. As the remaining film theaters diminished, it finally dawn on him that he was working himself into obsolescence. Two years ago, at 53yo, his fulltime work dried-up. Now they toss him a bone a week at a time, 5 or 6 times a year. No pension.
I did a military career. It is a workforce of mostly 18 to 24 year olds. At 40, you may literally be the oldest person at a job site. At 20 years of service, I was put onto pension.
People say that your young enough to start a second career. However, a military career is one where we rack-up disabilities. Beyond 15 years on Active Duty, it is a common conversation to see people discussing how much further they are keep going with a crushed disc, torn tendons, etc. I have 5 'disabilities', for whatever good that does.
I took the pension [which is very close to Minimum-Wage] and we decided to start farming instead.
I didn't 'retire' - I was 'dumped' in 2012 at the age of 63.... in the beginning I applied for anything and everything (and salary didn't matter) ... in 3 years I had 5 interviews - the last one about 6 months ago. I still look for any job now but not as much anymore as my health has deteriorated to the point were I can't even walk a few feet without pain. I am 66 now and think I will never work again - this was the first year that I will not be paying income taxes (I did my 1040 return and cried when I realized I was done) ... most of the jobs I was applying for were part-time and paid anywhere from 7.78 to 9/hr ... all I have after years of working is 'nothing' ... the last 8 years before I was 'dumped' I worked 12 hour graveyard shifts ... so I forgot what it was that I liked to do ... I don't talk to people or even go out except to the grocery store ... I am 'bitter' 'angry' 'hateful'. I never felt I was part of the world before and more so now. I hate everything and everyone.
I didn't 'retire' - I was 'dumped' in 2012 at the age of 63.... in the beginning I applied for anything and everything (and salary didn't matter) ... in 3 years I had 5 interviews - the last one about 6 months ago. I still look for any job now but not as much anymore as my health has deteriorated to the point were I can't even walk a few feet without pain. I am 66 now and think I will never work again - this was the first year that I will not be paying income taxes (I did my 1040 return and cried when I realized I was done) ... most of the jobs I was applying for were part-time and paid anywhere from 7.78 to 9/hr ... all I have after years of working is 'nothing' ... the last 8 years before I was 'dumped' I worked 12 hour graveyard shifts ... so I forgot what it was that I liked to do ... I don't talk to people or even go out except to the grocery store ... I am 'bitter' 'angry' 'hateful'. I never felt I was part of the world before and more so now. I hate everything and everyone.
Ah feel your pain, ceg.
I got lucky. When our industry - and our Sales Rep business - died I was 60. Fortunately, I was well suited to drive an 18 wheeler, and fortunately I had a contact, and fortunately that contact led me to one of the higher paying trucking jobs, and fortunately my wife adapted quickly, and fortunately I had picked one of the few trucking firm who were unaffected by the Great Recession............it was all luck. Things could have just as easily gone the other way for us.
Retired on time with assets intact. Lucky, that's all.
I retired at age 56 when our command was disestablished. Although I could have gone to work in DC at the Navy Yard, the daily commute would have been around 3.5 -5 hours, which would have made it physically unfeasible for me. As it was, things turned out for the best. My Mom was diagnosed with Alzheimers later that year and I had the time available to research and get her into assisted living and clean out/sell her home. And in late 2007, my husband's cancer reappeared unexpectedly. I was able to take care of him full-time until his death in March 2008. I would not have traded the time with either of them for a later life career at all.
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