The statistics about our ageing population are very interesting.  Did you know:

– 90 year olds + are the fastest growing age group

– Life expectancy for females  is 82.2 years and for males is 78 years

– Current ratio of workers to retirees is 4.7 to 1 while in 2050 the ratio will be just over 2 to 1 (dependency ratio).

– New Zealand currently has the oldest population in the OECD apart from Iceland.  In the future the 55 + age group will need to be the productivity drivers.

So what does all this mean?  Well we will certainly need to be working longer than we thought a few years ago.  If  we’re living longer then we will have to pay for it somehow.  Our population is an older one and we will not have the young people to support us in our old age!  In addition the government superannuation scheme age eligibility is likely to go up to 67 in the next few years.  We really need to look closely at our finances to ensure we have enough money to live well into our 80’s.

It also means that companies will need to manage their retirees well.  There is no retirement age now so how will organisations ensure their older workers are productive, ensure they aren’t  filling jobs for too long and not allowing younger people to move up the ladder?  And how will they ensure they do not make assumptions about what an older person is capable of or not capable of?

I think we had all better get on with planning our old age if we haven’t started yet.  If you are in your 40’s or 50’s you do need to ensure you have a clear career plan and a clear income plan to be able to live well into your future.  Planning will ensure your anxiety is lessened in elder years.   Without planning we will all have a lot less choice!