If your clients are 65 or older and plan on retiring, congratulations! Now they can start looking for a part-time job.
Over half of seniors surveyed by the Employee Benefit Research Institute said they continue to work past 65 because they want to stay active and involved.
People over 65 are continuing to work past retirement and the number of participants has nearly doubled in the past two decades, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Smartasset conducted a study and found that the average participation rate for seniors still working in the 100 cities analyzed was 17.7 percent. Of the 100 cities in the study, 84 cities saw a growing number of seniors working.
The study concentrated on 100 cities with the largest senior population, and ranked them by how much their senior citizen workforce participation rate increased from 2012 to 2016.
These are the cities, in ascending order, where the highest percentage of seniors are still working:
10. San Diego (tie)
Coastal life and sunny weather doesn’t come cheap in the southern California city, so seniors may need to continue working just to afford the lifestyle. In 2012, 15.9 percent of seniors were working, compared with 18.4 percent in 2016.
10.Dallas (tie)
Retirees can afford to live her comfortably. A one-bedroom apartment in Dallas costs an average of $997 per month. Add in utilities at $139.29 and internet service at $45.36, and you’ll pay 6.5 percent less than the national average. From 2012 to 2016, seniors in the workforce increased by 2.5 percentage points.
9. Lincoln, Nebr.
The job market in the capital city is good for seniors. The Census Bureau reports that about 3.6 percent of Lincoln’s residents are unemployed and 1.7 percent of seniors are unemployed. In 2016, about 22 percent of seniors were working or looking for work in Lincoln.
7. Long Beach, Calif. (tie)
With just 3.5 percent of seniors in Long Beach unemployed, the city had the lowest senior job participation rate in 2016. About 17.7 percent of seniors were working in 2016, which was up from 15 percent in 2012.
7. Denver (tie)
Seniors who stayed in the workforce increased by 2.7 percentage points from 2012 to 2016. Denver has 300 sunny days a year and 200 parks within the city limits, making the Mile High city a good place to retire and work.
6. New Orleans
Tourist attractions may be a good source for employment in the area, especially for seniors. In 2016, the senior labor force was 19.4 percent, which was up from16.6 percent in 2012.
5. St. Paul, Minn.
In Minnesota, paying taxes is tough on retirees, so it is no surprise that both of the Twin Cities are in the top 10 ranking. St. Paul had a senior labor force of 15.1 percent in 2012, which increased to 18 percent in 2016.
4. Seattle
One in every five seniors in Seattle is looking for work or is currently working based on the report. In 2012, over 18 percent of seniors were in the workforce, but in 2016, 21.2 percent of seniors are active in the workforce.
3. Akron, Ohio
Seniors in the workforce increased by 3.1 percentage points in Akron. The unemployment rate for residents aged 65 or over is under 6 percent in the city, the report found. In 2012, Akron had the lowest senior labor force rate of 14 percent, but in 2016 it jumped to almost 17 percent.
2. Yonkers, N.Y.
In 2016, seniors participating in the labor force increased by 4 percentage points since the report in 2012. That means that 20 percent of seniors are in the workforce in Yonkers. The median household income for the city’s senior citizens is $47,200, the report said.
1. Minneapolis
Maybe it’s the cold weather or the tax burden on seniors in the state that keeps them actively working or looking for work. Seniors in the city have continued to work, with 22 percent employed or looking for work. Census data showed that seniors in the labor force increased by 4.6 percentage points from 2012 to 2016.
The full report can be viewed here.
