Older Workers on the Move: Recareering in Later Life

Older Workers on the Move: Recareering in Later Life

Richard W. Johnson, Janette Kawachi, and Eric K. Lewis The Urban Institute

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Older Workers on the Move: Recareering in Later Life

Richard W. Johnson, Janette Kawachi, and Eric K. Lewis The Urban Institute

AARP's Public Policy Institute informs and stimulates public debate on the issues we face as we age. Through research, analysis and dialogue with the nation's leading experts, PPI promotes development of sound, creative policies to address our common need for economic security, health care, and quality of life. The views expressed herein are for information, debate, and discussion, and do not necessarily represent official policies of AARP.

#2009-08 April 2009 ? 2009, AARP Reprinting with permission only AARP Public Policy Institute 601 E Street, NW, Washington, DC 20049

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FOREWORD

Older Workers on the Move: Recareering in Later Life by Richard W. Johnson, Janette Kawachi, and Eric K. Lewis of the Urban Institute takes a close look at the characteristics of workers who change careers later in life. The process of "recareering," as it is called in this research report, is quite common and may become even more common if the baby boomers--who are fast reaching retirement age--act on their plans to work in retirement. Although many workers might prefer to retire from their long-term career jobs, perhaps phasing into retirement on those jobs, other workers indicate that they want to try something new before fully retiring. Still others may be propelled into making career changes because of poor health or job loss and the inability to find a job in their previous line of work.

Pioneering research by scholars such as Christopher Ruhm and Joseph Quinn has shown that, contrary to what many people assume, the process of retiring does not necessarily involve an abrupt cessation of career employment. Rather, millions of American workers transition from career jobs into new jobs, sometimes in the same line of work and in other cases to something very different from what they had been doing for much of their worklives. The move may be voluntary or involuntary; the work may involve a shift in hours and perhaps a reduction in wages; the new "bridge" jobs may last for years or retirement may come soon after the change.

Relatively little was known about recareering and the circumstances that prompt a change of careers at older ages. The analyses of Johnson, Kawachi, and Lewis shed some light on the extent and nature of recareering on the part of older workers.

Recareering depends in part on why workers leave their last jobs. For example, Johnson, Kawachi, and Lewis report that, controlling for other factors, retirees who take new jobs are far more likely than reemployed workers who had been laid off to move into new occupations. Regardless of the reason for the career change, hourly wages are lower for all career changers, but retirees experience the greatest loss. Recareerers are more likely to lose health benefits than gain them in their new positions, but they are also more likely to have flexible work schedules. Stressful working conditions fall in the new jobs. Despite the drop in wages and loss of health care coverage, there is apparently much to like in the new careers and very few recareerers say they dislike their jobs. A question that remains for future work, however, is the extent to which recareering encourages workers, especially the voluntary changers, to remain in the labor force longer than they would have without the change.

Sara E. Rix, Ph.D. Strategic Policy Advisor AARP Public Policy Institute

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