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More people are staying in work past the age at which they might previously have retired, either because they simply enjoy working or because they need to work for financial reasons. It is unlawful for your employer to force you to retire against your wishes before the age of 65 years old, except where your employer can objectively justify the earlier retirement age. Employees have the 'right to request' to work beyond the default retirement age or any other retirement age that is set by their employer and the employer has to consider the request seriously. For further information on this, see our section on Age Discrimination. If you do wish to continue working, there are several options available to you.
Staying at work
If you decide to stay in your current employment, you may want to consider making some changes to your current arrangements, such as reducing your working hours, flexible working arrangements, or a different role. It's important to balance your work and home life. The right to ask for flexible working aims to help employers and workers to agree on work patterns that suit everyone.
Flexible working describes any working pattern that is adapted to suit your needs. Common types of flexible working are:
- Part-time - working less than the normal hours, perhaps by working fewer days per week
- Flexi-time - choosing when to work (there's usually a core period during which you have to work)
- Annualised hours - your hours are worked out over a year (often set shifts with you deciding when to work the other hours)
- Compressed hours - working your agreed hours over fewer days
- Staggered hours - different starting, break and finishing times for employees in the same workplace
- Job-sharing - sharing a job designed for one person with someone else
- Home working - working from home
You can combine any of these working patterns to come up with something to suit your circumstances. Anyone can ask their employer for flexible work arrangements and you have statutory right to do so in certain circumstances, such as if you are caring for someone. Your employer must seriously consider any application you make, but they don't have to agree to it if there's a good business reason not to. You have the right to ask for flexible working; not the right to have it.
Working part-time after you retire
Reaching State Pension age doesn't mean that you have to give up work - either paid or voluntary. You can choose to keep on working while taking your State Pension entitlement, or you can delay your claim and get paid more later on. For further information about State Pension deferral, see our section on State Pension. If you're already getting the State Pension, you can cancel your claim if you get the chance to do some work that would pay enough for your needs. Your State Pension will stop until you choose to claim it again. Then, depending on how long you stopped claiming, you can take either the lump sum or extra State Pension. Note that you can only cancel once. When your State Pension restarts you won't be able to cancel again. Bear in mind that any money you earn after State Pension age may affect your income-related benefits, such as Pension Credit, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit.
For advice and information about how to find part-time work, see our section on Looking for work.
Other useful information
Age Concern’s guide Your employment choices
Age Concern’s factsheet Help with looking for work or starting your own business
Information NOW section on Self-employment
AdviceGuide
ACAS (Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service)
Article last updated August 19, 2008 1:53 pm
