A Portrait of Seniors in Canada

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Chapter 3. Continuous learning, work and participation in society

3.1 Educational attainment and life-long learning
3.2 Labour force participation
3.3 Retirement

Introduction

One of the fundamental characteristics that will distinguish the next generation of seniors from the current one is its higher level of educational attainment. During the 1960s, access to post-secondary education became easier for a much broader range of people. With the first baby boomers now entering their sixties, the proportion of seniors with a university degree or some post-secondary credentials will increase significantly. Section 3.1 of this chapter documents these important changes which are already altering the educational profile of seniors -and which will intensify in the future.

Many implications are associated with this shift in the educational composition of the senior population. As documented elsewhere in this report, and as innumerable studies have repeatedly shown in the past (Kingston et al. 2003), level of education is clearly associated with a very broad range of behaviours, attitudes and socio-economic outcomes. For example, people with a higher education also have better health, lower chances of being in low income, lower likelihood of social isolation, and so on. Most of these correlations are valid for seniors as well as for people under 65. Consequently, the changes in educational profile of seniors are likely to have significant impacts on many dimensions of social life, including seniors' labour market participation (covered in section 3.2 of this chapter) and retirement (in section 3.3).

That said, this chapter is mainly about the current generation of seniors. Section 3.2 on labour force participation includes information about seniors' labour force participation rates, part-time employment and self-employment, and job tenure. In section 3.3, different aspects of the experience of recent retirees are portrayed: At what age do people usually retire? Are recent retirees enjoying their retirement? How many recent retirees are likely to work for pay after their first retirement?

3.1 Educational attainment and life-long learning

In this section, we examine the educational credentials and skills of older Canadians along a number of dimensions, including educational attainment, literacy skills and workplace training. Some types of skills, such as the knowledge and wisdom that come from a lifetime of experiences, cannot be easily captured by survey data and are beyond the scope of our discussion.

Educational attainment

There have been considerable changes in the levels of educational attainment of older Canadians over the past 20 years. Between 1990 and 2004, the share of men aged 65 or older with less than high school declined from 62.7% to 46.6%, while the shares with a postsecondary certificate or diploma or a university degree increased (Chart 3.1.1). The same trends were evident among women aged 65 or older (Chart 3.1.2).

Changes in educational attainment have been particularly striking among persons aged 55 to 64. Among men in this age group, the share with less than high school declined by half, from 52.5% to 25.9% while the share with a university degree increased two-fold from 9.7% to 20.8%. Among women in this age group, the share with a postsecondary certificate or diploma increased from 16.2% to 28.9%, while the share with university degree increased almost three-fold, from 5.1% to 14.9%.

These trends reflect a generational effect as individuals now in their late fifties and early sixties were in their late teens and early twenties during the 1960s. At that time, the postsecondary education system in Canada was expanded and young people had more opportunities to obtain postsecondary credentials than was previously the case.

In the years ahead, the share of seniors with a postsecondary education will continue to increase as the baby boom generation replaces previous generations of seniors.

Higher levels of educational attainment are associated with many different outcomes, such as health behaviours, volunteering and giving, voting and political involvement, and literacy. Hence, the changing educational composition of seniors may be associated with a shift in the behaviours, expectations and experiences among the population aged 65 and older.

Literacy

In today's knowledge intensive society, literacy skills are a critical factor influencing quality of life. Literacy skills enable people to seek out, understand and apply information and help them make informed decisions regarding their health, housing, finances and other matters. Literacy skills are also a foundation upon which the acquisition of other proficiencies, such as computer skills, is built.

In 1994 and 2003, surveys were conducted to evaluate the literacy skills of Canadian adults. Based on test results, individuals were classified into one of four skill levels, with Level 1 denoting the lowest proficiency level and Level 4/5 the highest (see Text Box 1).

In 2003, over half of Canadian seniors (51.5%) were at prose literacy Level 1 and another 30.6% were at Level 2 (Chart 3.1.3). In total, over 80% of seniors had prose literacy skills considered below the desired threshold for coping well in a complex knowledge society. The other 17.9% of seniors had literacy skills at Level 3 or higher. Similarly, almost two-thirds of seniors (62.1%) were at numeracy Level 1 and another quarter (25.7%) were at numeracy Level 2. The same pattern was evident in the domain of document literacy (Table 3.1.1).

Compared with individuals in younger age groups, seniors were far more likely to have low levels of literacy and numeracy (Table 3.1.1). This relationship between age and literacy is evident in other countries and remains even when other factors, such as educational attainment, are taken into account.

The evidence in Chart 3.1.3 suggests that the literacy profile of seniors may change in the years ahead. The share of individuals aged 56 to 65 at prose literacy Level 1 (at 26.9%) is about half the share of individuals aged 66 or older at that level (at 51.5%). There may be an 'aging effect' to be considered here, as individuals now in their late fifties or early sixties may lose some of their literacy skills as they get older. But there may also be a 'generational effect' in that individuals in the baby boom generation may have stronger literacy skills than individuals in the generations that preceded them. This could be the result of differences in their experiences earlier in life, such as greater participation in postsecondary education. Comparing data at two points in time, individuals who were aged 57 to 66 in 1994 had an average prose literacy score of 233 points, while individuals who were in that age group in 2003 had an average score of 258 points. The increase of 25 points over nine years suggests that a generational effect may indeed be at play.

Job-related training

Participation in formal, job-related training

In this section, we examine formal and informal job-related training taken by older workers. Our focus is on workers aged 55 to 64 who were employed during the reference year (2002) used for the Adult Education and Training Survey (AETS). Information on workers aged 65 or older is not available.

Historically, the tendency has been for workers of older ages to have lower participation rates in job-related training than younger workers. This is true of Canada and other industrialized countries. Labour economists have generally agreed that expansion and improvement of skills for younger workers likely yield significant labour market benefits and returns on training investments. However, for older workers who have more work experience and who are closer to retirement, the benefits of training are perhaps less obvious.

In 2002, just under one-quarter (22.9%) of workers aged 55 to 64 participated in formal, job-related training, compared with about one-third of workers aged 35 to 54 (Chart 3.1.5). A slightly larger share of women than men aged 55 to 64 participated in training, at 25.3% and 21.1% respectively. In all age groups the likelihood of participating in formal job-related training is associated with higher levels of educational attainment. Among workers aged 55 to 64, 36.7% of those with a university degree had taken training in the past year compared with 7.6% of those with less than high school.

Between 1997 and 2002, the share of Canadian workers participating in job-related training increased from 29% to 35%. Much of this increase can be attributed to an actual increase in participation in job-related training, but some is also likely due to changes in how training data were collected.

Among workers aged 55 to 64, the share participating in formal job-related training increased from 14.9% to 22.9% between 1997 and 2002. A number of factors may account for this trend. First, the 55 to 64 year age group became 'younger' over this period, with a larger share of workers in their fifties and a smaller share in their sixties in 2002 than in 1997. Because of the relationship between age and training, this might have pushed up the training participation rate. Changes in other characteristics of older workers, specifically higher levels of educational attainment, may also be having a positive impact on their participation rates. The reality of an aging workforce could be making the training of older workers necessary from an employer's perspective.

The number of hours participants spend in training is an important and complementary measure to the participation rate. Across all age groups, average hours of training in 2002 were highest (at 248 hours per participant) for workers aged 25 to 34 and lowest (88 hours) for workers aged 55 to 64 (Table 3.1.2). Between 1997 and 2002, the number of hours of training rose substantially among training participants aged 55 to 64 - from 43 to 88 hours for those aged 55 to 64 and from 82 to 97 hours for those aged 45 to 54.

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Employers may sponsor or support training in many ways, such as providing the training, paying workers for the costs of training taken off-site, allowing workers to alter their work hours to enable them to take training and so on. When defined this way, 25.0% of all workers aged 25 to 64 took employer-sponsored training in 2002. Again, the likelihood of taking such training varied with age, as 15.6% of workers aged 55 to 64 took employer-sponsored training compared with 25.9% of workers aged 35 to 44 (Table 3.1.3).

Of workers aged 55 to 64 who took any formal job-related training, about two-thirds of them (68.0%) participated in employer-sponsored training.

Self-directed learning

Job-related training is not restricted to formal training. To better perform their tasks or to develop skills for a future job, workers can also learn on their own in an informal manner, for example, by consulting books or manuals, seeking advice from others, or observing someone perform a task. The Adult Education and Training Survey asked workers whether they had done any of these activities during the four weeks preceding the survey.

Older workers were less likely than younger workers to have participated in self-directed learning. While 32.4% of workers aged 35 to 44 had participated in self-directed learning, 23.1% of workers aged 55 to 64 had done so (Table 3.1.4).

Older workers who engaged in self-directed learning activities did many of the same activities as younger workers. About three-quarters of 'self-directed learners' had taught themselves by trying different methods or by consulting books or manuals, and around half had used the Internet or sought advice from someone (Table 3.1.5). Older workers were slightly less likely than their younger counterparts to seek advice from others, perhaps a reflection of their experience or more senior position within the workplace.

Unmet training needs or wants

Statistics Canada's 2003 Adult Education and Training Survey asked individuals about training that they had wanted to take but did not, and about training they had needed to take but did not. The need or desire to take job-related training can be considered as a measure for being willing or ready to engage in a training activity, and allows us to identify unmet training needs and wants.

Overall, about one-quarter (28%) of working adults reported that there was job-related training that they wanted or needed but did not take in 2002 (Chart 3.1.6). Unmet training wants or needs where most prevalent among workers aged 25 to 34 (34.2%) and lowest among workers aged 55 to 64 (15.7%). Nonetheless, about one in six workers aged 55 to 64 said there was training they had wanted or needed to take but did not do so.

Individuals who had participated in formal, job-related training in the previous year were more likely than non-participants to have unmet training wants or needs. This was the case across all age groups. Among workers aged 55 to 64, 27.6% of training participants had additional training wants or needs while this was the case for 12.2% of non-participants.

Money and time were the primary factors that prevented workers from taking the additional training they wanted or needed. Among older workers who had not taken training, about one-third (31.9%) said they were too busy at work to do so, while over one-quarter (28.6%) said that training was too expensive (Table 3.1.6).

Workers aged 55 to 64 were less likely than those in younger age groups to say family responsibilities and affordability posed were barriers to training. This is not surprising given that older workers are less likely to have children requiring child care and typically have higher earning than their younger counterparts. Conversely, older workers were more likely than younger workers to say they had not been able to find the training they wanted and that health problems pose a barrier to training (Chart 3.1.7).

When asked why they did not want or need any training, 60% of workers aged 55 to 64 said it was because they did not need further training. Smaller shares said they were too too busy to take training (15%) or that training was not a priority (18%) (Table 3.1.7).

3.2 Labour force participation

Paid employment

Although they are not very numerous, some seniors still have a job and/or participate in the labour market after the "standard" age of retirement of 65 years. This section presents labour market information about these seniors as well as about older workers (aged 55 to 64) and younger age groups. Emphasis is placed on changes over time in labour force participation rates, part-time employment, self-employment, and so on.

Age composition of the labour force

The aging of the population documented in chapter one is certainly reflected in the age composition of the labour force. In 1976, four of every ten people in Canada's labour force (42%) were 15 to 29 years of age; by 2004, 27% were in that age group. Conversely, the share of labour force participants aged 45 or older increased from 28 to 36% (Chart 3.2.1).

Just under 300,000 Canadians aged 65 and older participated in the labour force in 2004 - 287,000 of them employed and another 9,000 actively looking for work. Altogether, this group accounted for 1.7% of the total labour force. Another 1.9 million Canadians aged 55 to 64 participated in the labour force - 1.8 million of them employed and about 100,000 actively looking for work. This age group accounted for 11.1% of the total labour force in 2004.

As more and more individuals in the baby boom generation reach their sixties over the next decade, the share of the labour force comprised of older workers will increase (see Chapter 1 for details).

Labour force participation rates

Over the last 30 years, there have been significant changes in the extent to which older Canadians participate in the paid labour force. The trends have been different for men and women.

Between the mid-1970s and the mid-1990s, the labour force participation rates¹ of older men declined significantly. Between 1976 and 1996, the rate declined from 75.9% to 58.1% among men aged 55 to 64, while the rate declined from 24.5% to 16.4% among men aged 65 to 69 (Table 3.2.1). However, since the mid-1990s participation rates have rebounded upwards. Between 1996 and 2004, the participation rate among men aged 55 to 64 increased by about 8 percentage points, while among men aged 65 to 69 it increased by about 5 percentage points (Chart 3.2.2).

Among older women, labour force participation rates have increased steadily since the mid-1970s, reflecting the continued entry of women into the paid labour force. Particularly large increases have been evident since the late-1990s. Among women aged 55 to 64, the participation rate increased from 31.7% to 36.3% between 1976 and 1996, and increased further to 49.0% by 2004. Among women aged 65 to 69, the participation rate ranged between about 6% and 8% between 1976 and 2001, but reached 11% by 2004 (Chart 3.2.3).

The participation rate of men aged 70 and older has remained between about 6 and 8% since the late 1970s, while the rate among women aged 70 and older has remained around 2%.

Seniors with a university degree are much more likely to participate in the labour force than those with lower level of education (Chart 3.2.4). In 2004, the participation rate of university degree holders aged 65 and over was 4.6 times greater than the participation rate of seniors who had between 0 and 8 years of formal schooling (17.8% versus 3.9%).

Although of a lesser magnitude, the correlation between the level of education and participation in the labour market is in the same direction for individuals aged 55 to 64. As the members of that cohort turn 65 years old, it is possible that it will push the participation rate of seniors to higher levels in the years ahead - since "near-seniors" are about twice likely to have a university degree than the current generation of seniors. However, this scenario is likely to occur only if the future behaviours of near-seniors who have post-secondary credentials are similar (when they turn 65 years old) to those of the current generation of seniors with post-secondary credentials.

Part-time employment

From the mid-1970s to the mid- 1990s, there was an increase in the share of older men employed on a part-time basis². The share of employed men aged 55 to 64 working part-time increased from 3.7% to 10.0% between 1976 and 1996, while the share of employed men aged 65 or older doing so increased from 27.2% to 36.3% (Table 3.2.2). Since the mid-1990s, the incidence of part-time employment among older men has remained quite stable. The incidence of part-time employment among men aged 25 to 54 also increased between the mid-1970s and early 1990s, but has never exceeded 5%.

The incidence of part-time employment among women aged 55 to 64 has remained quite stable since the early 1980s, remaining within a range of about 29% to 33%. Likewise, among women aged 65 or older the incidence of part-time employment has remained within a range of about 55 to 60%, although it increased to 63.3% in 2004.

Most older Canadians who work on a part-time basis do so because of personal preferences. This is the case for 65% of those aged 55 to 64 and for 85% of those aged 65 or older (Table 3.2.3). Other reasons for working part-time include business conditions, the inability to find a full-time job, health considerations, and personal or family responsibilities.

Temporary employment³

Among paid employees aged 55 to 64, the share employed in temporary jobs increased modestly between 1997 and 2004, rising from 8.2% to 9.7% among men and from 7.6% to 9.4% among women (Table 3.2.4). In absolute terms, approximately 130,000 employees aged 55 to 64 worked in temporary jobs, the largest share of them employed in term or contract positions (43%), followed by casual jobs (29%) and seasonal jobs (26%).⁴

Just over one-fifth of paid employees aged 65 or older (21.8%) worked in temporary jobs in 2004, up from 14.8% in 1997. In absolute terms, approximately 10,000 women and 19,000 men aged 65 or older worked in a temporary job in 2004.

Among paid employees aged 25 to 54, the incidence of temporary employment remained quite stable between 1997 and 2004 - at around 8% among men and 9% to 10% among women.

Self-employment

Self-employment has long been more prevalent among older than younger Canadians, perhaps because individuals in older age groups have had the time necessary to accumulate the financial and human capital needed to start one's own business.

Through the late 1970s, about one-fifth of employed men aged 55 to 64 were self-employed. This share increased to almost 30% by 1990s, and has remained around 33% through much of the 1990s and 2000s (Chart 3.2.5). The share of employed men aged 65 or older engaged in self-employment increased from around 40% in the late 1970s to over 60% through much of the 1990s and 2000s. It is important to note that self-employed individuals typically retire at older ages then paid employees and the trend towards retirement at younger ages through the 1980s and 1990s was primarily among paid employees (more on this below). Consequently, as paid employees increasingly retired from the labour force in their late fifties and early sixties, a larger and larger share of the individuals remaining in the labour force was self-employed.

Job tenure

From the mid-1970s to the mid-1980s, about 43% of employed men age 55 to 64 had job tenures of 20 years or more. This share declined by about 7 percentage points (to 36.0%) between 1986 and 2004.⁵ Conversely, the share of employed men aged 55 to 64 with short job tenures - that is, job tenures of 5 years or less - increased from 21.8% to 27.1% (Chart 3.2.6).⁶ A number of factors may account for these trends. For example, individuals with long job tenure may have been more likely than others to have retired early during the 1990s given the pension contributions and savings they accumulated over their working lives. Alternatively, short job tenures may have become more prevalent because early retirees returned to paid employment after their initial retirement.

Trends have been very different among women. The share of employed women aged 55 to 64 with job tenures of 20 years or more increased from 3.9% to 9.4% between 1986 and 2004, reflecting the attachment of younger cohorts to the labour force (Chart 3.2.7).

Unionization

Between 1997 and 2004,⁷ the share of male employees who belonged to a union or were covered by a collective agreement declined from 42.8% to 39.3% (Chart 3.2.8). This was part of a long-term trend towards lower levels of unionization among men in all age groups (Morissette, Schellenberg and Johnson, 2005). Conversely, the share of women aged 55 to 64 who belonged to a union or were covered by a collective agreement increased from 34.9% to 38.4%. This too was part of a long-term trend towards higher levels of unionization among women in older age groups. As a result, the rate of unionization is now comparable among men and women in older age groups.

Over the last two decades, an increasing share of older women are employed in public sector industries, such as health, education, social services and government, and this has been an important factor underlying rising rates of unionization among them. In contrast, a declining share of older men is employed in goods-producing industries, such as manufacturing, and this has been an important factor underlying declining rates of unionization among them.

3.3 Retirement

Traditionally, the transition to retirement was associated, for most workers, with entering their "golden years". This is not the case anymore, as many people leave the workforce long before the "standard" age of retirement. In the context of more complex retirement transitions (Stone, 2006), not all seniors are retirees (some are still working and have never retired, others have never worked) and not all retirees are "seniors" either (if seniors are to be defined as all people aged 65 and over). Consequently, this section will not be only about seniors, nor about all seniors. The focus is placed instead on seniors or near-seniors who are current retirees or who are experiencing their transition from the labour market to retirement, given that retirement is more a process than an event.

This section provides information about reasons for retirement, the timing of retirement, enjoyment of life in retirement and post-retirement employment. The first part provides background information about how the retirement transition has evolved in recent years.

Median age of retirement⁸

The median age of retirement has fallen dramatically in the past two decades. From the mid 1970s to the mid 1980s, it hovered around age 65. But in the late 1980s, it started dropping quickly, and continued to do so until hitting a low at 60.6 in 1997, and then fluctuating around that level in subsequent years.

This decline was most likely initiated in 1987 by lowering the minimum age at which one could begin to draw benefits from the Canada Pension Plan-from age 65 to 60, with reduced benefits. The continued drop in the median age at retirement may have been related to widespread government cutbacks and corporate downsizing in the 1990s, combined with early retirement incentives. In 2005, the median age of retirement was 61.0 years (Chart 3.3.1).

The median age at retirement for men was close to that for women until the mid 1990s. After that, the median age declined faster for women than for men. In 2005, the median age of retirement for men was 62.6 years, higher than the 60.0 years for women.

Since 1976, public sector employees have consistently retired at a younger median age than those in the private sector or the self-employed. The difference in retirement age between employees in the private and public sectors began to diverge in 1984 when public sector workers began retiring earlier. The median age at retirement among public sector employees (i.e., education, health care and social assistance, as well as government), declined from 64.8 years in 1976 to 57.2 years in 1999; however, it was back up to 58.7 years by 2005 (Chart 3.3.2).

The median retirement age of employees in the private sector remained fairly stable from 1976 to 1988 but began a long-term decline afterward. By 1999, it had dropped to 61.3 years (versus 65 years in the late 1970s) and then began rising again, to reach 62.6 years in 2005. Among the self-employed, the median retirement age has remained relatively steady since the mid 1970s, fluctuating between 64.3 and 65.9 years.

Voluntary or involuntary retirement

While some workers retire voluntarily from their jobs, others have to retire for reasons over which they have little or no control - for example their employer had a mandatory retirement policy, they were unemployed and could not find another job, their job was downsized. Generally speaking, involuntary retirement is associated with less positive outcomes for retirees, such as lower enjoyment of life in retirement (Schellenberg, Turcotte and Ram, 2005a).

Of the individuals who retired from the labour market between 1992 and 2002,⁹ about a quarter reported that they did so involuntarily (27%). Level of education is strongly associated with the likelihood of a voluntary or involuntary retirement. Specifically, 81% of recent retirees with a university degree reported that their retirement from the labour market was voluntary. In contrast, this was the case for only 68% of those with less than high school as their highest level of educational attainment.

Reasons for retirement

The most frequently reported reason to retire was because retirement was financially possible (65%) (Table 3.3.1). Not surprisingly, this reason was much more common among those who retired voluntarily than among those who did not (76% versus 34%).

Health problems were, for involuntary retirees, the number one reason why they left the labour market (44%). In contrast, only 20% of voluntary retirees reported that they had retired for health related reasons. Mandatory retirement policies were the reason for retirement for one out five recent retirees who left the labour force at 65 years old and over.

Retirees with a higher level of education were more likely to report that they had retired because it was financially possible to do so, and were much less likely to say that it was because of their own health, or because their job had been downsized. In general, individuals with higher education have jobs with higher salaries and are more likely to be covered by an employee sponsored pension plan, or to have accumulated sufficient savings during their career. As the first Baby Boomers approach retirement, it is likely that more and more individuals will be in a position to make a more positive transition into retirement.

Possible incentives for continuing to work

With possible shortages in the labour market looming, policy makers and employers are searching for new ways to retain older workers on the job. Could older workers potentially be interested in staying longer in the workforce if certain choices were offered to them?

The 2002 General Social Survey asked retired respondents what factor might have influenced them to continue working (Table 3.3.2). Over one-quarter indicated they might have changed their decision to retire if they had been able to reduce their work schedule without their pension being affected, either by working fewer days (28%) or shorter days (26%). In addition, just under one-fifth would have been influenced by more vacation leave. Altogether, 31% cited at least one of these three pension-related reasons. The importance of work arrangements is also shown by the 28% who would have continued working on a part-time basis.

Health problems were a consideration for many recent retirees, as 26% of them said they would have continued working had their health been better. Many were also responsive to financial incentives, as 21% of recent retirees said that they would have continued working had their salary been increased. Finally, smaller shares of recent retirees said they would have continued working if mandatory retirement policies had not existed in their workplace (12%) or if they could have found suitable caregiving arrangements (6%). Results were similar for men and women.

Enjoyment of retirement

The thought of retirement can often be appealing. But does retirement really measure up to people's expectations? Do individuals enjoy life more in retirement than they did while still working?

When the GSS asked recent retirees, "Compared to the year before you retired, do you now enjoy life more, less or about the same?", nearly half (47%) said that they enjoyed life more now. A slightly smaller proportion (41%) took about the same amount of pleasure in life before and after retirement, while 11% reported that they enjoyed life less now (Table 3.3.3).

The association between health and happiness is striking. Individuals whose current health was fair or poor were most likely to experience a decline in their enjoyment of life (39%), while those whose health was excellent were least likely to feel this way (5%). Similarly, retirees with very good health were much more likely than those with fair or poor health to report an increase in their enjoyment of life: 53% and 24%, respectively.

Most people would probably agree that while money doesn't guarantee happiness, it helps make life more enjoyable. Indeed, retirees whose financial situation had improved since retirement were most likely to say their enjoyment of life had increased (63%). Individuals whose financial position remained the same came next (51%), followed by those whose finances had deteriorated (36%).

Is early retirement the key to happiness? According to data from the 2002 GSS, retiring sooner rather than later does make a difference: 55% of individuals who retired between the ages of 50 and 54 reported enjoying life more after retirement, compared with about 35% of those who took retirement when they were aged 65 to 69. It is possible that age at retirement reflects small differences in health or financial well-being. Alternatively, individuals who retired at older ages may have done so because they enjoyed their work and, in comparison, found retired life less satisfying. At the same time, retirees who left the labour force earlier may have been eager to do so and to make the most of retired life.

Enjoying retired life seems more likely when one plans for it while still in the labour force. GSS respondents were asked whether or not they planned for their retirement by participating in physical activities, developing other leisure activities or hobbies, getting involved in volunteer work, or gathering information about retirement.

People who participated in three or four of these activities were far more likely to report increased enjoyment of life in retirement (62%) than those who participated in two (51%), one (46%) or none at all (36%). Perhaps these activities afforded individuals greater life enjoyment in retirement. Or, it may be that individuals who were most eager to leave the labour force were also most likely to prepare for retirement and to enjoy their new life to the fullest.

Post-retirement employment

Post-retirement employment is an option to consider for many types of retirees, e.g. those who are experiencing financial difficulties, those who don't like retirement and those who enjoy retirement but who are also missing some aspects of their employment (feeling of being useful, social contacts, intellectual gratification, etc.). In the 2002 General Social Survey, retired individuals were asked if they had done any paid work, at any time, at any job or business after their first retirement. Just over one-fifth (22%) of recent retirees said they had done so. Another 4% said they had looked for a job, but had not been able to find one.

Various characteristics influenced the likelihood of returning to work after an initial retirement (Table 3.3.4). Men were slightly more likely than women to have done so (25% and 18%, respectively). Health was also a key consideration. Individuals in fair or poor health were far less likely to return to work than those whose health was excellent (10% and 27%, respectively).

Post-retirement employment was more common among those retiring from certain occupations and industries. Individuals from professional occupations were most likely to return to work (33%), followed by managers (26%) and technicians (25%). These figures may reflect greater and more attractive employment opportunities available to these individuals-jobs offering good pay, interesting work and few physical demands.

The likelihood of returning to paid employment was also associated with age. Individuals who first retired before age 60 were more likely to return to work than those who retired later. Perhaps those under 60 had concerns about their financial preparations or were not yet psychologically ready for retirement.

Finally, the likelihood of post-retirement employment was linked to specific retirement reasons-most notably, receipt of an early retirement incentive and no longer enjoying one's work. In the latter case, post-retirement employment may reflect the efforts of some individuals to start a new career or to find employment in a more satisfying work environment.

Notes:

1. The labour force participation rate shows the proportion of a population that is either employed or unemployed (i.e. actively looking for work).
2. A person is considered to be full-time if his/her usual hours at the main job are greater than 29 hours per week.
3. A temporary job has a predetermined end date, or will end as soon as a specified project is completed.
4. The remaining share works in 'other' temporary jobs of an unspecified nature.
5. In 1989 and 2000, two comparable points in the business cycle, the share of employed men aged 55 to 64 with job tenures of 20 years or more declined from 40.5% to 37.4%.
6. Again, comparing comparable points in the business cycle (1989 and 2000), the share of employed men aged 55 to 64 with job tenures of 5 years or less increased from 24.5% to 27.1%.
7. Information on unionization was first collected on the Labour Force Survey in 1997.
8. This section is reproduced from Chapter M in The Canadian Labour Market at a Glance, 2005.
9. The 2002 GSS used a subjective definition of retirement that involved several questions. First, people who said their main activity during the previous 12 months was "retired" were identified as retirees. Others were subsequently asked, "Have you ever retired?" and those who said "yes" were also identified as retirees. Finally, individuals who said they had not ever retired were probed further; those who answered "yes" to any of these follow-up questions were also classified as retirees. This analysis is limited to recent retirees, defined as people who first retired during the years 1992 to 2002 inclusively.