At retirement age, many employee benefits will cease, but some employee benefits do continue through retirement, but it depends on the employer
Employee retirement can be a double edged sword for both the employer and the employee. The employee may be leaving for many reasons, but they often find they are being forced out by the organization that needs young, fresh workers to replace them. It is also a double-edged sword for the employer because a lifetime of knowledge and maturity is leaving the organization and despite the work rate of an older employee is much lower than a younger one, the retirement brain drain can affect the organization for some time to come. At retirement, employees no longer get a gold watch, a party or even a thank-you note for their service, so it comes as a bittersweet ending to a career that may have endured many years at an organization and the wealth of knowledge that they have accumulated. Employees may be able to carry some of their employee benefits into retirement, but it is often a stressful time all around, especially if the employee has not planned for it well.
The Biggest Impact On What Benefits Retirees Can Expect After Retirement
One of the biggest considerations for retirees retiring from any job is who their employer is, and what type of benefit accommodations that employer will make after they have actually reached retirement age and left the employment of the organization. Anyone working in a government role, or a university or college. will find the retirement benefits are often extremely generous. Public and private corporations on the other hand tend not to give employees very good benefits after they retire as they assume that the employee has been paid well enough over their career for them to save some money to be able to retire and pay for their own benefits, however they see fit. Some of the best benefits that a retiring employee can expect to see is lifetime healthcare, a pension package, dental plans and a health care flexible spending account. Some less obvious benefits include free legal coverage, continued access to the organization campus and a club or social group to engage retirees especially if they have knowledge that current employees may still want to leverage and they will need a method to be able to contact them after their retirement has begun.
What are the Top 10 Employee Benefits for Retirees?
The list for the top employee benefits for retirees is quite different from that of current employees:
- Pension
- Healthcare
- Dental care
- Golden parachute
- Eligible for rehire
- Flexible spend account for health care
- Free legal services
- Mentoring program
- Retiree social club to remain engaged and encourage a sense of purpose
- Access to organizational discount benefits services including theater, movies, vacations etc.
Who Are The Top Employers That Give the Best Retirement Benefits
All the employers that give the best retirement benefits all government agencies and public and private corporations do not even come close. The most generous employers for retirement benefits is the federal government and that includes all branches and divisions. The second most generous is the United States Postal Service, which is not officially a branch of the federal government. Universities and colleges come in a close third and are especially generous for those who have achieved tenure at the various schools.
Do Prospective Employees Consider Retiree Benefits
When considering whether or not to accept a job employees look at the total package that is on offer. The total package does not just mean salary, it includes employee benefits such as health benefits, dental benefits and retirement benefits. For some employees these benefits are only available for as long as they are employed by the organization that is offering them, but some employers will continue to contribute towards the employee benefits after the employees have retired. Although this is becoming less popular as organizations are cutting costs some organizations still continue to offer this employee benefit, however as the employee is no longer a part of the group insurance the amount the employee has to contribute has risen significantly over the past years. Retirees realized some time ago that the costs for Medicare are not free and as the individual or family grows older, the medical costs can take up a significant chunk of that savings or income.
Understanding Employee Benefits After Retirement
Other than pensions there are a few employee benefits that the employees can enjoy once they have retired. These are non-payment benefits such as health, dental and vision benefits, all of these additional benefits come at a cost to the employer so it is not common practice to offer them. However in recent times some organisations have started to offer these additional benefits to employees after they retire by offering part payment packages that they only make a small contribution too and the employers also contribute towards the monthly premium. This is a valuable benefit to the employee as even though they are making contributions towards the additional benefits, as they are still going through the organization, they will continue to get the same discounted insurance premiums as well as getting continued coverage without the hassle of having to process changes to their doctors, specialists and hospitals.