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'Unretirement' wins fans

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By Darla Mercado

October 12, 2008 6:01 am ET

Mountains of bills and employee benefits aren't the only reasons workers stay at their jobs after 67.

Working also helps them keep their minds engaged.

That was the finding of Toronto-based Sun Life Financial Inc.'s new Unretirement Index, which tracks the attitudes and expectations that American workers have about retirement. "Unretirement" is defined as working a minimum of 20 hours a week after 67, which is when Americans are eligible to receive full Social Security benefits.

This index, which will be released several times a year, will measure how financial, societal and economic factors affect those feelings. It will also forecast employees' future retirement decisions.

Eighty-three percent of the 1,515 adults aged 30 to 66 surveyed for the inaugural release of the index said that they planned to continue working beyond 67 because they liked to stay mentally engaged.

"[Boomers] stand at the portal of advancing age more driven by their desire to stay engaged with achievements and family relationships than by the value of their portfolio," said Carol Orsborn, an author and expert on marketing to baby boomers, said in a statement.

Nevertheless, workers are still concerned about not having enough money to cover basic living expenses once they are old enough to collect Social Security. Just 46% said that they felt "very confident" that they could cover those costs.

The outlook is even bleaker for projected medical costs. Just 28% said that they were "very confident" about their ability to pay those bills.

On a scale of 0 to 100, the Unretirement Index yielded an overall score of 46, a composite score based on five other factors: the economy, which had a score of 30; personal finance (48); health care expenses (69); government benefits (42); and employee benefits (43).

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