UK workers taking a more flexible approach to retirement

British workers are opting to work past traditional retirement ages, as well as phasing out full-time work by cutting back hours ahead of retirement, new research reveals.

The research, conducted by Aegon, revealed that UK workers were previously more likely to move straight from work into full retirement, though only half of current retirees are taking this option nowadays.

Steven Cameron, Pensions Director at Aegon, comments: “Many people are choosing to keep working and earning, perhaps by cutting back their hours gradually, even once they’ve started taking their pension.”

Up until 2011, the UK implemented a default retirement age of 65-years-old. As a result, employers could force their staff to retire at 65 regardless of whether the employee wanted to continue working, Nutmeg.com reports. However, the more recent abolition of the default retirement age gave people greater choice over when to stop work.