How much are you earning per annum?

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Retire early, live longer

By Paula Aven Gladych

August 21, 2013

Encouraging people to retire early can mean a longer life.

A study by the Tinbergen Institute at VU University Amsterdam found that retiring early reduced a man’s risk of dying within five years by 42.3 percent.

The study looked at a policy change that went into effect in the Netherlands in 2004, where certain age groups of civil servants were offered the opportunity to retire as early as age 55. The standard retirement age in the Netherlands is 65, but the actual average age of retirement has been considerably lower because of the widespread use of early retirement arrangements in virtually all sectors of the economy.

The Dutch pension system rests on three pillars: a public old-age pension, which is financed on a pay-as-you-go basis; occupational pensions and private provisions.

In 2005, most occupational pension funds offered early retirement arrangements while the public-sector pension fund offered arrangements for early retirement from age 61 onward. When the rules changed in 2004, individuals who were at least 55 and employed as a civil servant for at least 10 years were eligible for early retirement benefits.

The report’s authors used a temporary decrease in the early retirement age for civil servants to estimate the impact of early retirement on the probability of dying within five years.

The 42.3 percent drop in mortality rates because of early retirement was “large and significant,” according to the paper’s authors.

“When we shift the horizon, we find the largest impact of retirement on survival within the first year,” the study found. It posits that a main reason for the extended life after retirement is the removal of stress-related factors associated with demanding work. Many people who die shortly after retirement die from stroke.

“After retirement, workers’ body and mind are possibly discharged, reducing the probability to die within five years. As men were working more hours than women, work may have been more stressful and demanding for men than for women, discharging men from a heavier weight at retirement than women,” the study found.

The study’s results raise two major implications. Pension funds would have to pay more and for longer periods of time if people lived longer; but if the retirement age was increased, as many countries are doing, more people would die earlier, relieving stress on already strapped pension plans. Increased mortality would reduce the longevity risk borne by pension funds, which could allow pension funds to make their pension arrangements more generous, the paper concluded.

This is at odds with many scientific studies that shows early retirement leads to premature death. There were even articles in the Straits Times and on BBC about this.

You might want to think twice about retiring early. That’s because, new research has shown a link between early retirement and premature death.

Research by Andreas Kuhn, Jean-Philippe Wuellrich and Josef Zweimüller found that men, in particular, had an increased risk of death before age 67 when they retired early. To prove this, the researchers looked at a group of blue-collar workers from Austria, born between 1929 and 1941.

"We find that a reduction in the retirement age causes a significant increase in the risk of premature death for males, but not for females," the research said. "The effect for males is not only statistically significant but also quantitatively important. According to our estimates, one additional year of early retirement causes an increase in the risk of premature death of 2.4 percentage points (a relative increase of about 13.4 percent, or 1.8 months in terms of years of life lost)."

Early retirement can lead to risk of cardiovascular death
Retirement at an early age can increase the risk of mortality — specifically, cardiovascular death. In a study conducted at the University of Athens, researchers investigated the health effects of retirement and age at retirement. Researchers analyzed the all-cause and cause-specific mortality in relation to employment status and age at retirement by analyzing the European Investigation into Cancer and Nutrition study of 16,827 men and women enrolled from 1994 to 1999 who were either employed or had retired from employment at enrollment. These participants were documented in 2006 for diagnosis of stroke, cancer, coronary heart disease, or diabetes mellitus. Researchers found that retirees had a 51-percent increase in all-cause mortality, and cardiovascular mortality was higher than cancer mortality. The results of the study conclude that a five-year increase in age at retirement was linked to a 10-percent decrease in mortality. Early retirement could be a risk factor for cardiovascular death.

Early retirement can lead to dementia
The onset of dementia can be accelerated by early retirement, but delayed by retiring later. In a recent study of approximately half a million people in France, researchers found that delaying retirement can reduce the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia. In the study, of those that retired at a later age, only three percent had develop dementia.

Early retirement can lead to depression
Throwing in the towel earlier can increase the likelihood of developing depression. In a UK study conducted by the Institute of Economic Affairs, researchers analyzed data from a survey of 11 European countries who had 7,000 to 9,000 participants between 50 and 70 years old. Results showed that retirement increases the probability of being depressed by approximately 40 percent and the probability of being diagnosed by at least one physical condition by approximately 60 percent. "Old people benefit from continuing some form of paid work for longer instead of retiring entirely," said Gabriel H. Sahlgren, a research fellow at the Institute of Economic Affairs and author of the study.

Early retirement can lead to anxiety
Early retirement anxiety can start to affect a person's health well before he or she officially retires. Once you submit your papers for retirement, the decision lingers in your mind as the countdown begins for your final day of work. While this may be exciting at first, it can also evoke physical and emotional symptoms, such as anxiety. The heightened level of anxiety is brought on by issues with finances, where many individuals do not know how long their savings will last. In a survey conducted CareerBuilder and Harris, 536 full-time employees, 60 and older, were surveyed in the private-sector. Sixty-five percent of respondents said they chose to delay retirement because they were not equipped to provide for themselves financially without the help of their income. And while this may seem like an unfortunate circumstance, these workers may have dodged some serious health risks.

Oct. 20, 2005 -- Early retirement is supposed to give you extra golden years to enjoy. But that may not happen, a new study suggests.

A study of Shell Oil employees shows that people who retire at age 55 and live to be at least 65 die sooner than people who retire at 65. After age 65, the early retirees have a 37% higher risk of death than counterparts that retired at 65.

That's not all. People who retire at 55 are 89% more likely to die in the 10 years after retirement than those who retire at 65.

"This difference could not be attributed to the effects of sex, socioeconomic status, or calendar year of the study, although the poorer health status of some early retirees may play some part," note Shan P. Tsai and colleagues at Shell Health Services.

The researchers looked at all past employees of Shell Oil who retired at ages 55, 60, or 65.

"Mortality improved with increasing age at retirement for people from both high and low socioeconomic groups," they found. "Retiring at 65 was not associated with a greater risk of mortality than retiring at 55 or 60."

So do people die early when they retire early or when they retire late?

The jury is still out as far as I am concerned. The world is abound with stories of people who struck it rich and retire early, and lived till a ripe old age. At the same time there are eminent people (both academic, politicians and in the industries) who never seemed to want to retire even in the 70s. So what gives?

I guess it boils down to the individual and the job he/she is in. If the person has weak health and in a bad job, retiring early may not extend his life. A normal person in a bad job, retiring early may help to extend his life. Likewise, a person with weak health and in a good job may not live long either whether he retire early or not. Whether a person chooses to retire early or not is entirely a personal decision.

But that's not the point. This point is - ensure your savings can outlast your retirement. Retiring when your children are still financial dependent on you is in my opinion is a risky decision at best, and disastrous at worst. I dont mind helping people who tried their best, their hardest and still could not make ends meet, but I detest people who copped out, because they think they will die if they work. They want to live longer but at the charity of others.

Retired couple, 55 & 58 years old. Net worth $8m, lives in a penthouse worth $2m. Passive income $300k pa. We are now busy doing charity work in various organisations and takes part in many activities. Enjoy having long lunches with fellow retirees and also working out in the condo gym. We could have worked another 10 years to earn the additional $5mil, but what's the use? We dont want to leave too much wealth behind as it will make our kids lazy.

I am ashamed to share this but here goes. I'm in my early 40s and I only earn $50k pa. My wife, who is a grad in her late 30s earns $110k. I feel ashamed but she has no problem with me earning less. We are contented staying in our 4 room HDB flat. She loves me dearly for being a good husband and loving father. I make up for my low income by doing more of the household chores and tuitioning the kids. While I had tried upgrading my skills, my earnings is somehow limited in my field of work. To do a degree full time make not be the best thing to do as I may be overqualified and may actually not be employed after that. I started learning to invest in stocks in my free time.

Manager in name at a GLC (those kind with no direct reports)

6.7k * 13 months
+ 2.5 months bonus on average

decent i guess. 28 years old.

Its ok to be a manager without direct report as long as you can see a path in your career progression (which will mean salary growth). Your salary is very decent for a 28 yr old, but what is more important is to ensure that the job;- gives you good learning exposure, is an important part of the company's mission, gives you visibility to the management and networking. That is, it is not a sit-in-a-corner-work-by-yourself kind of job where over time, people dont remember you. This is what big organisations do to staff they want to get rid off but cannot sack.

There are advantages and disadvantages of having no direct reports. The good things are you dont have to plan and worry about subordinates' careers, dont have to answer for subordinates' misconduct, poor performance and resignations. And dont have to stress about having them come and complain to you every year during bonus and promotion time.

The disadvantage is that you might have to do everything yourself. You might not get the attention of management who might pay more attention to bigger workgroups. Might not get assigned important and big tasks because your bosses think you only one person how to handle this big project?

Having said that, in my opinion, when young, it is better to have the experience of managing staff. It will add to your resume.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

Manager in name at a GLC (those kind with no direct reports)

6.7k * 13 months
+ 2.5 months bonus on average

decent i guess. 28 years old.

If you are already feeling shame at this juncture, I think going forward no hope. By the way, the shame is not just on you, but on your wife as well. Dont just think of yourself.

Here is why:

Right now, in your 40s, you still have some time to try and earn more. And your wife, at late 30s, and from her income of $110k, I guess that she is probably at lower-middle management level. If she is in technical line, she would be like a senior engineer. At this level, she and you would not feel any pressure when you attend her company functions. She is after all a junior level staff.

If your wife gets promoted to manager level or higher, and you still havent improved your situation, then it will be really tough not just you, but for her as well. Those company functions where spouses have to attend will really be awkward for both you. But at this stage, I guess both of you would have devised some cover stories. A common one would be that you are in business - just starting up etc.. But with all lies, you have keep adding more lies and you will not feel good about it.

Originally Posted by Unregistered

I am ashamed to share this but here goes. I'm in my early 40s and I only earn $50k pa. My wife, who is a grad in her late 30s earns $110k. I feel ashamed but she has no problem with me earning less. We are contented staying in our 4 room HDB flat. She loves me dearly for being a good husband and loving father. I make up for my low income by doing more of the household chores and tuitioning the kids. While I had tried upgrading my skills, my earnings is somehow limited in my field of work. To do a degree full time make not be the best thing to do as I may be overqualified and may actually not be employed after that. I started learning to invest in stocks in my free time.