Rise of the ‘unretirees’: One pensioner in six is now heading again to the office

Many of us spend years longing for the days of retirement, when we finally have time to travel the world, dive into hobbies or start exciting new projects.

But a significant number of older people are finding life after work is not all it’s cracked up to be, deciding to ‘unretire’ as financial reality sets in, according to research.

One in six (16 per cent) retirees surveyed have already returned to employment or are considering doing so.

Three in 10 said their standard of living is worse than before they retired, compared with just over a fifth (22 per cent) having seen an improvement and 19 per cent saying they had not appreciated how long retirement would last.

A fifth of the 6,000 people surveyed for Standard Life said they did not realise how much money they would need, with 21 per cent wishing they had planned their retirement more thoroughly.

Mike Ambery, retirement savings director at Standard Life, said: ‘Retirement is no longer a single moment where work simply stops.

‘More flexible approaches to work – including part-time roles and phased retirement – are making it easier for people to stay in the workforce for longer.’ Standard Life said inflation has also had a significant impact on retirees’ spending power.

For people who retire before the state pension age, or who do not have a salary-based defined benefit pension with built-in inflation protection, maintaining income in later life can require more planning and, in many cases, greater investment risk, it said.

Many older people are shunning the hobby and gardening dream of retiring and choosing to return to the workplace 

Mr Ambery added: ‘For some, returning to work is about staying active and connected. But for others, it reflects the reality that retirement isn’t always turning out as expected, particularly as rising costs put pressure on incomes.

‘Simple steps can make a real difference – from regularly checking in on your pension savings and thinking about how you’ll use them to generate an income, to reviewing how much you’re taking and whether it’s likely to last for the years ahead.

‘Check when you’re due to retire, as your planned retirement date and your state pension age don’t always align, and to make sure you’ve planned for any gap between the two.’