American workers and retirees face wide gap on working in retirement
Updated
Updated · USA TODAY · May 2
American workers and retirees face wide gap on working in retirement
8 articles · Updated · USA TODAY · May 2
The 2026 EBRI survey of 2,544 Americans found 75% of workers expect paid retirement work, while only 31% of retirees work and 27% draw income from it.
Experts said health problems, layoffs and the difficulty older people face finding part-time or new jobs often force abrupt retirement and derail plans to phase out work gradually.
Financial insecurity is a key driver: about two-fifths of workers lack retirement confidence, while AARP recently found 7% of retirees had “unretired”, most commonly to earn more money.
With so many planning to work after retiring, why do so few actually manage to stay employed—and what barriers are hardest to overcome?
How are rising healthcare costs and policy uncertainty reshaping what it means to retire in America—and what strategies can help retirees adapt?
Could new federal initiatives like TrumpIRA.gov and Saver’s Match finally help close America’s persistent retirement savings gap, or will deeper reforms be needed?