•40,000 Aussies will reach the age of 100 by the middle of the century

•Life expectancy will jump to 97 for women and 95 for men

•By 2055, number of people reaching retirement will have doubled

•Unexpected trend shows many over-60s already returning to work OLDER Australians are being urged to stay in the workforce longer to support a rapidly ageing population.

Treasurer Joe Hockey yesterday issued a call to arms for workers to delay their ­retirement until after 65 to ­future-proof the nation for the coming generations. It comes as the five-yearly Intergenerational ­Report, released today, reveals Australians born after 2055 are expected to live to an average of almost 100 years, placing a massive burden on the shrinking tax base needed to pay for the demographic shift.

Almost 40,000 Australians will have reached 100 by the middle of the century, an increase of well over 300 times the 122 people of that age alive in 1974-75. And more than two million will be aged over 85 — compared with 80,000 in the mid-1970s — representing a fivefold increase to almost 5 per cent of the population. “We need a call to arms for a grey army,” Mr Hockey told The Daily Telegraph. “We want you. We want you at the front. Not grey nomads but a grey army of workers.”

The report says that with improvements in health and new technologies, the average life expectancy of Australians will be 95 years for men and 97 for women by 2055, compared with 80.7 and 84.8 now. In 1905 it was just 55 and 59.

Life expectancy Joe Hockey needs YOU … to delay retirement. .

But illustrating the looming budget and economic crisis awaiting Australia if pre-emptive social and fiscal reforms are not undertaken now, the report also reveals the number of people reaching the current retirement age of 65 will have almost doubled by 2055.

The problem for the next generation is that the ratio between the number of people of traditional working age — between 15 and 65 — and retirees will have halved. In 1970, there were an average of 7.5 people of working age relative to those of pension age. This has shrunk to 4.5 today, and it will again halve by 2055 to just 2.7 workers for every retiree. “There will be fewer people of traditional working age relative to each person aged over 65,” the report says.

The strain on the economy and the federal budget due to a shrinking number of workers paying income tax relative to those of pension age will be immense. But in encouraging signs that older people are willing to work if the opportunities are created, the ­report forecasts that about 20 per cent of all people aged over 65 will still be participating in the workforce.

The report reveals an emerging and unexpected trend showing over-65s are already returning to work. The damage to pension funds caused by the global ­financial crisis meant many people could not afford to ­retire, and this trend will continue. Today, some 10 per cent of over-65s are working, and this is forecast to rise to 20 per cent by 2055. The Greens said they would push for the report to be referred to a Senate budget committee for scrutiny.

KEITH’S ONLY TOO HAPPY TO SHELVE HIS RETIREMENT

Ian Walker RETIREMENT seemed a good idea at the time. But after a couple of years out of the workforce, Keith Wardle, 59, from Rouse Hill decided days working on the house were not doing it for him.

Now working as an assistant at Masters Home Improvement’s new Rouse Hill store, the former Rolls Royce customer service worker loves his new lease on work life. “I was just excited about the chance of getting back out there to become more active,” Mr Wardle said.

Keith Wardle, 60, at work yesterday in his second career, at Masters Home Improvement “I wanted to get back into the workforce, the DIY thing was fine but I wanted to get back out there and start challenging myself. “I had no idea how it was going to work out, but within a few weeks I was really enjoying what I wanted to get back into the workforce, the DIY thing was fine but I wanted to get back out there and start challenging myself Keith Wardle I was doing. For the last couple of months I’ve been flat out. I’ve thoroughly enjoyed it.” As one of the more experienced hands on the floor with 40 years of technical experience, Mr Wardle has passed on pearls of wisdom to younger workers he has taken under his wing.

Preparing him and his wife for long-term retirement also pushed him to start earning again. Mostly, however, it was the chance to make his DIY passion his livelihood. The full-time appliances showroom assistant does not plan on retiring for a second time any time soon. “I just want to keep going. I like to be occupied, I like to be active.”

Source: www.dailytelegraph.com.au

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