Government Jobs For Retirees
Government jobs can be great jobs for retirees because they come with many benefits. Some positions have health and dental coverage for working a minimum of 10 hours a week. This coverage can make a lot of difference to live a stressfree life in retirement.
And its easier to get a job as a retiree or senior at the government compared to the corporate world due to special hiring programs. And you can get free training on the job. So in many cases, government jobs are the best jobs for retirees. And here are a couple of government jobs you can check out:
What Is A Pension
A pension is a retirement plan that provides monthly income during retirement. Pensions are defined benefit plans, in contrast to 401s and IRAs, which are defined contribution plans.
The difference between the two types is that defined benefit plans are typically funded by an employer or labor union, while a 401 or IRA is funded by employee contributions . Further, a defined benefit plan promises a specific income, while a defined contribution plan does not.
If you have a pension, you will receive a set monthly income in retirement. The amount of this income may be determined at a flat rate or as a formula that takes into account your salary and years of service with an organization.
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 protects retirement plans, including pensions. Under ERISA rules, your employer can require workers to accrue five years of service in order to be 100% vested in pension benefits. If your employer opts for a seven-year schedule, they must provide at least 20% vesting after three years.
Best Jobs If You Want To Retire Early
30 Best Jobs If You Want To Retire Early
Even if you love your job, its hard not to fantasize about early retirement. But the reality is that many Americans will end up having to work past the traditional retirement age of 65 due to a number of factors, including longer life expectancy, stagnant wages and a lack of jobs that offer a pension plan to guarantee income in retirement. Many people simply wont be able to save enough to retire comfortably before 65 youd need to have saved over $1 million, regardless of your state, another GOBankingRates study found. But some jobs offer a better chance at an early retirement than others.
Related: The Complete Guide to the Best Retirement Age
GOBankingRates determined the best jobs for those who want to retire before 65 by looking at the age people in each occupation expect to retire, the average employer 401 contribution per hour of work, average salary and the average retirement savings someone in that occupation would have saved in a 401 by the early retirement age, 62. If you want to retire early, these are the best jobs if you want to retire rich.
- Average percentage of people who believe they will keep working past 65: 58%
- Annual average wage: $91,500
- Estimated 401 savings: $574,743
If you want to know how to retire early, consider a job as an engineer. Mechanical engineers make a high average salary compared to most of the other jobs included in this study, so they have more income available to be put toward a 401.
Don’t Miss: Best Companies To Retire From
Work At A National Park In Retirement
Working at a national park has been a dream of mine. Maybe its yours, too? Ive profiled RVers who tour the nation, sometimes stopping at national parks or other locales for service work work.
Remember, these side hustles, at national parks, summer camps, ski resorts and guest lodges, are mostly seasonal, and a good resource is Cool Works. It lists postings from employers in gorgeous locales around the U.S. Youre not going to become a forest ranger, but will more likely see job listings for reservation clerks, gift shop employees, and cooks, as well as land and water shuttle drivers. Most of these employers would like you for the full season, but the shoulder season, when students have to return to college, almost always has openings. Pay hovers around minimum wage, though that could be higher in 2021 with so many job openings. Some even offer lodging in dorms or homes, or if youre that RVer, you may get a free hookup.
Now this is a cool side hustle.
Floral Arranger Or Designer

If you like working with floral arrangements and have experience handling floral designs, this can be an excellent job for a retiree. Everyone seems happy when giving or receiving flowers and can make a dreary day feel like sunshine. I have always admired those who arrange flowers in beautiful designs.
Becoming a florist became a dream job for Dr. Susan Garetz when she retired from medicine as an ear, nose, and throat specialist in 2016. Long before she retired, she joined a garden club and enjoyed making floral arrangements as her hobby, turning into her second act, studying how to do Japanese floral designing.
Floral arrangers earn $14.92 per hour or $31,033 annually.
Recommended Reading: How Much Will I Need To Live On In Retirement
How Do You Plan Your Retirement
The moment you start earning is the right time to start making your retirement plans. When you start your retirement fund during the early stages of life, you can easily accumulate enough money that will help cover your needs by the time you become a retiree. Plus, this will minimize your burden in thinking about how to generate income as you near your retirement age. However, there are some people who tend to postpone their retirement plans because they think those years are still three decades away.
Invest in your retirement as early as you can because these are the times when financial responsibilities are still minimal, and you lessen the burden of investing for your future later. Planning for retirement is not rocket science at all. Below are steps to help you get started.
Identify your Investment Horizon.To do this, decide the age you want to retire. Compute the number of years you have left until you retire. This is the investment horizon or the investable age for you as the investor. You should also identify until what age you will plan the expenses. For instance, if youre 25 years old and you want to retire by age 60, and you wish to plan for expenses until you turn 80, your investment horizon is 35 years old. Your goal is to ensure that your present investments can help you meet your expenses until you turn 80.
Pour Wine At A Local Winery Or Wine Bar
This is my fantasy post-retirement job. Its a quiet, easygoing gig where you get to talk to people about wine all day. Whats not to like?
You dont have to be a sommelier or wine connoisseur, although it wont hurt. You just need a passion for wine and the willingness to work for a small paycheck.
As a perk of the job, you normally get steep discounts on the wine sold at the establishment. Its a far cry from matching 401 contributions, but its a fun benefit nonetheless.
Recommended Reading: Retirement Communities In Westminster Md
Careers With The Best Retirement Benefits
The COVID-19 outbreak served as a wake-up call for so many people in so many ways. Among many things, people started becoming more conscious about their notions around retirement. For the most part, we began to realize that 65 should no longer be considered the retirement age. The effects of the lockdowns, coupled with job losses in different sectors, and even pay cuts, have resulted in long-term repercussions on peoples personal finances.
The recent work-from-home setup and new-age skilled jobs are also significantly changing the dynamics of work life. Because of this current work environment, the usual retirement age we are all aware of is no longer relevant. This has increased the number of attention people give to their careers. Especially for incoming college students, contemplating which career to follow has become more confusing and challenging than ever. Which career do you think is suitable for you that will give you a relaxing life after retirement?
To have an amazing life as a retiree, everything starts from choosing a job with generous retirement benefits. However, the amounts and benefits vary considerably. Natalie Kramer, a BLS economist said that the defined benefits provided by industries vary depending on the union affiliation of an employee, the employer size, and the employees occupation.
We compiled these 20 occupations that offer professionals a promising and comfortable life when its time to say goodbye to the job:
Second Career Ideas: Can Retirees Still Secure Another
There are generally two camps where post-retirement workers fall: those who already have comfortable lifestyles who simply wish to stay engaged, active, and pursue a dream and those who cannot afford to retire on their Social Security benefits and current savings.
Regardless of the age though, securing careers after retirement is tricky. But there are still many job sectors that are open for retirees who want to try something different or put and share their expertise to work. Below are five fields that retirees can consider working with after they retire.
Executive and Career Coaching Who knows all about navigating the rat race than the experienced and highly qualified corporate executive. If you have outstanding career experiences, you can share those achievements as a mentor or a coach for a corner office crowd. You dont have to work full-time. Depending on the experience, most executive coaches charge between $150 and $500 per hour.
Franchise Owner You can never be too late to become an entrepreneur, especially if you have money on hand that you wont mind losing. But be aware that 30% of new small businesses end up closing within the first five years of operation. Still, you can reach that lifelong dream of being your own boss. To be safe, buy into an existing franchise. At present, there are more than 800,000 different franchises across America, and this has become one of the most popular second career options for retirees.
RELATED LINKS
Read Also: Where To Go For Retirement
Film And Tv Extras And Background Actors
Being an extra or background actor is a great part-time job for retirees if you have a flexible schedule and you are not looking for a regular income. Some casting calls are specifically aimed at the 65+ age group.
To be an extra, you do not need to have any acting ability or experience and you wont need to say anything. All you need to do is be punctual, listen carefully and follow directions.
Being an extra is one of the best jobs in retirement to meet new people. However, be prepared to wait around for long periods of time, so make sure you bring something to occupy yourself. To find work, search for casting websites on the internet such as Central Casting.
Average income: $75 per hour.
Reasons You Shouldnt Retire Early
It’s tempting to consider an early retirement, especially if you have experienced enough financial success in your career to position yourself to exit the workforce earlier than anticipated.
Before making any sudden moves, take a moment to consider the bigger financial picture. Here are some valid reasons why you should not retire early.
Read Also: Retirement Homes In New Hampshire
Find Out When You Can Collect Your State Pension
The state retirement age is increasing. As of 2021, the State Pension age for both men and women is 66, rising to 67 by 2028, and 68 after that. The age that youll be able to collect your State Pension will depend on when you were born.
Find out how much State Pension youll get on the GOV.UK website
Firefighting Prevention And Inspection

- Average percentage of people who believe they will keep working past 65: 50%
- Annual average wage: $52,560
- Estimated 401 savings: $328,263
Firefighters benefit from generous employer retirement savings contributions. The average hourly 401 contribution made by employers is $5.83, tied with one other job for the second-highest average contribution for all the jobs included in this study.
Don’t Miss: How To Estimate Your Retirement Income
Icipate In A Research Study
Have you ever wanted to be part of a research study and save humankind? Medical research is essential to finding new drugs, remedies, and dietary supplements, but they have to go through many clinical trials. Teaching hospitals, clinics, biotech companies, and research organizations seek people who will participate in their studies for paid opportunities that can be $1,000 or more. You can check local hospitals or clinics in your area, like ResearchMatch.org, Covance, or ClinicalTrials.gov. Kessler Foundation does survey questionnaires.
Earning More On The Side: ‘we Had To Go Out And Make Extra Money’
The Financially Independent, Retire Early movement known as FIRE centers around maximizing the amount of money you’re able to stash away in investment accounts that, in theory, grow at a compounding rate over time. To boost the amount you’re saving, you can spend less or earn more.
Or you can try to do both.
Take Amon and Christina Browning, who retired to Portugal in 2019 when Amon was 39 and Christina was 41. When they decided to embark on an early retirement journey, the couple were making a combined $168,000 a year while supporting two children in the San Francisco Bay Area.
“We knew from our jobs, if we saved as much money as we could, for however many years, we still would not be able to retire early,” Christina told CNBC Make It. “We had to go out and make extra money. So that was a huge focus for us.”
The Brownings spent their weekends flipping houses and driving for ridesharing services such as Uber. They lived as frugally as they could and brought in even more money by selling extra home goods and personal items on Facebook marketplace.
But even the earning and saving extra money wouldn’t have been enough to retire on if they weren’t savvy about generating interest. “We put our money back into the stock market, back into real estate, so that we could get that compound effect,” Christina said. “That’s how you get to your financial independence.”
Also Check: Jimmy Buffett Retirement Community Hilton Head
Reasons For Jobs For Retirees:
- Fear of not having enough savings for retirement years.
- Prefer taking social security benefits as late as possible .
- Health care costs are rising, and you would like to boost your nest egg.
- Make extra money to continue to live a good lifestyle.
- Enjoy the social engagement and relationships you make through working.
- Seek intellectual stimulation from solving problems at work.
- Continuing to work as a senior citizen may not appeal to everyone, but the virtues of work are plentiful for many.
We put together a list of jobs for retirees that should fit the varying needs and lifestyles of those who prefer to remain working whether you want to:
- Work from home and online.
- Leverage your career credentials and skills.
- Use a car or a house.
- Get additional training or certification.
- Have more spare time.
**the Jobs On This Post Are Now Expired But You Can Search Flexjobs Newest Flexible Job Listings Here**
You have a wealth of knowledge in your field and years of experience. Share that information to benefit others by becoming a consultant. These positions allow you to work a flexible schedule while you earn more for retirement.
1. Implementation Consultant
Occasional
Provide modeling and the development of consulting sessions for school administrators and teachers. Communicate with implementation coordinators and maintain service records. A Masters degree and 3 years experience needed. This is a per diem job with travel.
2. Onsite IT Consultant
Part-Time
Onsite IT Consultant needed with one year related experience and stellar communication skills for a part-time opportunity. Travel will be required. Compensation is $30 an hour. The primary function of this role is to troubleshoot networking issues.
Have a cheerful disposition and like interacting with others? Working a side telecommuting position in customer service allows you to save more to retire early. Here are some great opportunities:
3. Customer Service
Telecommute
Seeking a customer service representative for a remote opportunity. The right candidate will provide excellent customer service to assist customers with questions and concerns. Must be willing to learn and possess a positive attitude.
4. Work-at-Home Agent
Telecommute
Also Check: Retiring At 59 1 2
The Jobs Where Retirement Is Early As Standard
The public sector was long thought of as a solid option for people wanting to retire early, thanks to pension schemes which began paying out at 60 or sometimes younger.
Now this has changed in most cases and people joining the NHS, civil service or becoming teachers can expect to get their workplace pension at state pension age.
However, there are some physically demanding uniformed services where people retire at a younger age as standard.
Police officer: The normal retirement age for people joining the Police Pension Scheme is 60. This isnt the case for civilian police staff, however, whose default retirement age is linked to the state pension age.
Armed forces: Members of the armed forces get one of the UKs most generous pensions according to the UK government, to reflect the unique sacrifice they have provided their country throughout their career. The default pension age is 60, having increased by five years in 2015.
Firefighter: The standard pension age for firefighters is also 60.
Become An Adjunct Professor In Retirement
If you were a professional in your career job, colleges and universities are always on the lookout for adjunct professors or lecturers. Some may require a masters degree others just a college degree and professional experience to share with students. I taught visual and print journalism at two esteemed J-schools one required a masters degree, which I have for 10 years while holding down a full-time job.
The side hustles added several thousand dollars to my annual household income, and, more, it was richly fulfilling to work with students eager to learn. How do you get an adjunct teaching job? Reach out to community colleges, colleges or universities where you live. Depending on your specialty say, accounting contact the department head in that particular school and inquire about becoming an adjunct.
You May Like: Valic Retirement Services Phone Number