How long did you work?

[albireo13]

I was curious ... how long do people work full time before they retire?

For me, I plan to retire this year. It will 41 years of full time employment.
I do not count any years doing odd jobs or part time.

What's normal? what's average?

 

[Lawrencewendall]

For me, it was 36 years (21.5 in the Army, 6.5 as a DoD contractor and 8 as a Fed) and then the numbers said I didn't need to do it anymore.

 

[Teacher Terry]

26 years but I stayed home with my kids until all were in school. Have been working part time in the 8 years since retiring but didn’t count that.

 

[Sojourner]

22 years of full-time work for me before I semi-FIREd, then another 5 years of part-time, freelance consulting. As of this year, I am about 99% retired, only doing a few hours of paid consulting w*rk per month on average. I'm in my early 50s.

 

[MRG]

I spent 29 years in my IT career when I retired. Before that I spent 10 years logging and in sawmills. I consider those years earning my Doctorate in The School of Hard Knocks.

 

[smalltownguy1]

27.5 in the military guard reserve and active duty mixed.age 17-45
Civilian age 16-45

 

[street]

40 years in the career I choose and 35 with the same company.

 

[Markola]

22 years of full-time work for me before I semi-FIREd, then another 5 years of part-time, freelance consulting. As of this year, I am about 99% retired, only doing a few hours of paid consulting w*rk per month on average. I'm in my early 50s.

DW is now 57 and semi-FIREd for two years after a 26 year career and it looks like I will be semi-FIREd in July at age 54 after a 28 year career.

 

[Clone]

If you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life!

Worked 35 years for MegaCorp, then 6 years in academia. So a total of 35 years!

 

[Rocket Man]

35 years full time. The last 6 years part time. Plan on 2 more years part time.

 

[MBAustin]

31 years, split between two megacorps.

 

[ExFlyBoy5]

3 years part/full time during/after high school, then 22 years in the Air Force. Retired and haven't w*rked since.

 

[MissMolly]

36 years in one job or another as a W-2 employee. 10 years as a 1099 consultant.

 

[REWahoo]

Two years full-time while finishing college, 8 years in the military, then 27 years in the corp world = 37 years.

 

[kcowan]

35 years, the last 10 consulting.

 

[Moemg]

40 years in Nursing

 

[f35phixer]

43 years when i call it quits in Dec 2020. Jan. 1977 joined USN , got out in Dec 1979, Been where i am now since Jan 1980, i'm done!

 

[Gumby]

35 years.

 

[Librarian]

DH is retiring in 2021 & me in 2022

DH will have 34 years in; I will have 30.

 

[jollystomper]

39 years in IT, all with the same Megacorp (but different jobs within that Megacorp).


I had skipped a grade, when young, so graduated HS at 17 and college at 21, so retired at 60.

 

[Nemo2]

What's normal?

I got this far before realizing I was in the wrong place. "Don't get up, I'll show myself out."

 

[DenverGuy42]

stopped working at age 50.

The number of years working depends on what you count as work

had two paper routes (one morning 7 days a week, one evening 6 days a week) from ages 12-16.

from ages 16-18 I worked part time as a busboy/host/waiter at a restaurant. About 20-28 hours/week

during college, 18-22, I worked 30-45 hours a week in food service (football and basketball season sent us into overtime), during the summers I worked at the restaurant I started at 16 - and my last summer before my last year I was a janitor at the college full time.

From 22-27, I had my first corporate job programming.

From 27-50 I worked at a large tech company.

So, if you count the paper routes - 38 years.

If you start counting at part time restaurant - 34 years.

If you start counting at full time work during college - 32 years.

If you just count after graduation, 28 years

 

[unclemick]

age 21 to 50 plus 4 summers college and about a year in two stints as a jobshopper aka contract engineer.

heh heh heh - aerospace stuff. My old buddy old pal retired Air Force - had my favorite saying -'if they didn't me pay to work here I'd have to buy a ticket so I could come watch.'

 

[jimbee]

If I only count full time work after graduation from college: 31 years, 7 months, 26 days. But who's counting?

 

[Car-Guy]

Started earning money in my early teens working various part time jobs and then 40 years full time after school.