Oxymoron: "Working Retirement"

[REWahoo]

According to a MarketWatch.com article, many workers want their employers to offer scaled-back employment to permit continued working in retirement , but most companies don't provide this opportunity.

 

[retire@40]

That's why it would make more sense to do something on your own rather than depending on a "boss" to allow you to work as little as you want.

Lots of opportunities out there for semi-retirement if one just looks and tries.

 

[macdaddy]

One personal anecdote I will share. A family member is part of a medical practice on the west coast, about 12 doctors and 20 nurses. One of the doctors (very senior and respected) wanted to move to part-time (30 hrs/week with no call) from full time (55 hrs/week with 1x-2x week call). The other doctors basically decided NO WAY not even for a reduction in pay that would equal far less per hour than they made now. The fear was that once one doctor was on part time, other doctors and nurses would all want to move to part time too, and this would cause lots of problems for the practice dynamics. The doctor offered to work 30 hours a week for 100k instead of 55 hours a week for 300k - seems like they would be able to make a profit on him, but still no dice. Clearly the answer is to run your own show so you can decide what schedule works best for you. Industry may be more receptive to part timers but I think a lot of these hopeful boomers will find the transition to part-time work more difficult than they anticipate.

 

[Martha]

Macdaddy, I heard some of the same concerns from my partners when I proposed going parttime. I asked them to be real and look at themselves. None were planning or desiring to work part time or retire any time soon. So there would be no bursting floodgates.

I have been part time for a year and a half now. No one else has expressed any interest.

 

[cj]

It does depend a lot on the circumstances. I went to a 4-day week (32 hours/wk) more than a year ago. There was a bit of fear that others would want to do it, but no one else could afford it. Where I was, I could have pretty much done what I wanted - down to 3 days per week or whatever. My boss and some of my coworkers really wanted me to stay. But I decided I'd had enough. Even though the boss was willing to let me name my hours, I did get some negative vibes at times from a few of my peers for not working full time.

CJ

 

[VoyT]

Well, I suppose some of those negative vibes are jealousy. On the other hand, in some companies, a part-time deal for one person most likely means that any undone tasks or unfilled shifts get dumped on everyone else.

 

[retire@40]

Clearly the answer is to run your own show so you can decide what schedule works best for you.

Exactly.  When I decided to cut my clients and reduce my work hours I just did it.  There was no "boss" to tell me I couldn't do it.  Only three things happened:  I worked less hours, I made less money, I had had much less stress.

If I ever want to ramp it back up to full time plus, I can, but I doubt I ever will again.

 

[cj]

Well, I suppose some of those negative vibes are jealousy.  On the other hand, in some companies, a part-time deal for one person most likely means that any undone tasks or unfilled shifts get dumped on everyone else.

The other side of that is where your hours (and salary) get cut but not your workload.  That's more like what I had...

CJ

 

[Andre1969]

I can fully understand about the jealous/annoying coworkers. My office lead let me leave 1/2 hour early on Friday, meaning I got to go at 3:30 instead of 4. I come in at 7:30. My coworker started griping about how I just had Monday off. Umm, excuse me? Yeah, I had Monday off, but it wasn't GIVEN to me. It was earned, from leave I accumulated.

But that's how she is. Whenever she thinks someone else is getting an unfair advantage over her, she pitches a fit. In her little mind, she was thinking that SHE should get to leave at 3:30. Nevermind the fact that she works 8:30-5, so that would mean she's actually getting out 1 1/2 hours early.

I've also got a pretty substantial amount of leave saved up. 338 hours, I think. I get 7.69 hours every two weeks (200 per year). Basically, I could almost take off one day every pay period and almost never deplete my leave stash. I've been doing that, too, trying to take off a day here and day there, making a 3-day weekend when I can. It helps alot with the stress and annoyance of my job, and in some ways allows me to disconnect with the job for a bit. Almost like dipping my toes into the swimming pool of retirement.

Of course, my coworker likes to gripe about the leave I have saved up. "Oh, you should donate your leave", she's mentioned once or twice awhile back. And when I tell her that's something that I've earned "Oh, you'll never use all of that; what are you saving it for?" If nothing else, if our company loses the contract next time around, that leave will get paid out to us. So it's not like it's a frivolous thing.

I have, however, learned long ago to keep my mouth shut about financial matters with her. And that includes how much leave I have saved up. She's one of those types that takes off so much she has to do the leave without pay thing pretty often.

Once I get my portfolio padded a bit better, I'd love to scale back my hours, but I don't think they'd let me do it in my current position. I've thought about even bringing up the fact that it could save them some money, but if that was a concern, they'd probably axe my coworker before they'd let me scale back.

 

[eridanus]

I do contract work so I have time off after one job ends and before the next one starts. This gives me at least a month off every year. I also have a natural tendency to work less then 40/week (read: I'm lazy.) I start out at 40 or 40+ but I take off early here and come in late there and soon I'm booking fewer and fewer hours regularly. Add in some vacations during contracts and I work less then 1300 hours/year. My clients don't seem to care, as the work gets done, and it makes for a happier me.