Providing Information and Support for Employee Retirement: An Essential EAP Expertise

Abstract

More than 11,200 Americans will turn 65 every day from 2024 through 2027, totaling over 4.1 million per year, according to the Retirement Income Institute at the Alliance for Lifetime Income. This 1 demographic occurrence marks “the largest surge of retiring Americans in history.” And Employee Assistance professionals will likely see an increase in requests for services related to this demographic shift, if they haven’t already. Effects of Retirement on Individuals Retirement, as a significant life transition, can profoundly affect individual employees and their families. Factors such as company policies (for example, is retirement mandated? Is there a gradual off-ramp?), financial and emotional preparation, and pre-existing notions about retirement can shape one’s experience. All potential individual responses to retirement are beyond the scope of this paper to examine, but interested readers are referred to the works of the late John W. Osborne, PhD2,3 Emotions surrounding retirement vary widely among employees, ranging from cheerful anticipation to uncertainty and fear. Often, individuals experience a mix of positive and negative feelings. Family members, especially spouses, may feel uneasy about having the retired person around more, hence the line, “I married you for better or worse, but not for lunch” (attributed to Maryon Pearson, wife of the 14th prime minister of Canada, Lester Bowles Pearson).