You Can Even Work After Retiring

What a great time to be a retiree!

If you’re 65 today and in pretty good health, you can expect to live till you’re 85. Continue to be in good health as you age and you will probably live longer.

You have the opportunity to do many different things during your retirement. Things you couldn’t do while you were working. You can even go back to work. The best thing is you can do something entirely new—not the work you did in the past.

Work? Why Would I Want to Go Back to Work?

There are different reasons. Some are:

  • Personal Fulfillment
  • Supplemental income
  • Social activity
  • Financial support for other family members
  • Keep your mind active

There is no mandatory retirement age in most professions. So there are many options open to you.

Again, you don’t have to go back to your old job. You don’t even have to do the same type of work you were doing. You have your base retirement income to fall back on. So you can be more selective. You can look for work that satisfies you emotionally rather than work that just provides you an income.

You can also arrange your work schedule to fit in with your retirement. You can work in addition to traveling, doing fun things, and taking part in social activities. You may even want to take some courses and classes to expand your knowledge.

While some retirees work full time, you don’t have to. You can look for a part-time job. Many employers have part-time jobs available for retirees.

You may not need additional income. So you may decide to volunteer at a hospital, church, charity, or nonprofit agency.

Two Services Available through the Office on Aging

The Knox County CAC Office on Aging has set up two services to help seniors find work. These are open to residents of Knox County. There is no charge for them.

The first is the Senior Employment Service. Here, they provide job-search assistance, individualized job counseling, semiannual job fairs and workshops for seniors seeking employment.

Most of the employers they work with currently have low- to mid-level full- or part-time work available. These employers like hiring seniors because seniors typically are available to work more flexible schedules than their regular full-time employees.

The second is the Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP). This is a federal job training program for unemployed low-income seniors age 55 or older who face barriers to employment.

SCSEP places these people in part-time paid community service assignments where they receive on-the-job training. The goal of this program is to give them job-search skills and work experience. This training prepares them to get similar work in the private sector.

To be eligible for this federal program an individual has to have a total family income no greater than 125 percent of the federal poverty guidelines. Each participant works 20 hours each week. The pay is $7.25 an hour.

If you would like more information about either of these programs, please call Kayleen Weaver or Frankie Slay at the Office on Aging, (865) 524-2786, to schedule an appointment.