Why More Retirees Are Going Back to Work

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After Ray Hurtado of Haverford, Pennsylvania, retired eight years ago from his job at a health care company, he began thinking about how he wanted to spend his retirement years.

“I’m in good health, believe in aging well and plan to be around for a long time,” says Hurtado, 68. “I started looking for opportunities where I could meet new people, challenge my mind and

also make a meaningful contribution.”

The solution, he decided, was to start working again. Hurtado is one of many Americans who have unretired, a post-pandemic trend that’s seeing some retirees rejoin the workforce. Many are

returning to work to offset inflation, increase their social interactions and find a new passion and purpose.

According to Judith Ward, a certified financial planner and thought leadership director with Baltimore-based T. Rowe Price, a global investment management firm and a leader in retirement,

many of the “excess” retirees from the height of the COVID-19 pandemic — 2.4 million people who retired before they would have been expected to, by the Federal Reserve’s calculations — have

now chosen to unretire.

A September T. Rowe Price report, “‘Unretiring’: Why Recent Retirees Want to Go Back to Work,” sheds light on the trend and offers financial advice to those reentering the workforce.

“Returning to work doesn’t always mean returning to a previous career,” Ward says. “Our study found that many choose to unretire in order to secure additional financial or social benefits.”

Hurtado, who now works as a licensed real estate agent, wants to help families achieve their dreams of owning a home while they’re achieving a sense of stability and financial independence.

He is also looking to get a part-time job with a nonprofit that helps children in need.