It certainly looks like campaigners who are fighting against ageism have gotten one step closer to winning the battle. Under new measures being introduced between Q2 and Q3 this year elderly workers over the age of 65 will not face mandatory retirement in most occupations. This will allow many would-be pensioners the ability to stay at work and still contribute to their pension pots until such times they feel ready to retire.
This signals very good news, particularly for those on low incomes who are close to retirement age but do not have a sufficient pension pot in order to keep them in the lifestyle to which they have become accustomed. In addition, this will also allow those who are happy to work on to move onto more flexible jobs, after the age of 65, the opportunity to do so.
However, the news coincided with a bit of news that could adversely impact the same population. The government announced, through the Pensions Bill, that they are bringing forward the state pension age rise to 66 in 2020. This will mean that people will have to wait longer to get their state pension entitlement. In addition, they are proposing to switch to a less generous index to access pension rises.
These changes will have a considerable impact on the average person who will have to work for longer and potentially lose out on pension income. As a consequence there will almost certainly have to be an increased focus from individuals to start to pay into their pension pots and increase their average pension balance in order to enjoy a decent income post retirement.