Photo courtesy of Home Instead Senior Care
Bob Tarrant, who re-entered the work force to work at Home Instead as a CAREGiver, helps out a client on one of his shifts.
Jay Jones, who retired about five years ago, said when Social Security came into effect in 1965 for the first time, the anticipated payout was through age 72. In 2018, he said, the anticipated payout age is up to 84.
“So, we’ve added 12 years of additional life span as an average,” he said, “and most of us like to keep busy, like to keep working. That’s why I think it’s a different phenomenon now than it was with my grandparents.”
That’s why, he said, more and more seniors are wanting to go back to work.
Shortly after Jones retired from a long career in hospital administration, he decided to do just that. This time, it was as a consultant for the marketing department at Home Instead Senior Care in Vestavia Hills, where he gives back to the community by teaching continuing educational courses and tips on how to re-enter the workplace after retirement.
Home Instead is located at 2059 Columbiana Rd Suite 105, where it serves as a network of locally-owned franchise offices dedicated to keeping older family members in their homes, in addition to a resource for seniors and their families on a variety of issues. Recently, Home Instead has turned its focus to community involvement by offering free online articles and resources all about “rewriting retirement.”
“The website we have set up gives the individual the chance to go in and do some preliminary work in terms of, ‘Okay, maybe I think I want to go back to work,’” Jones said.
One of the new resources includes an UnRetire Yourself Quiz, which gives seniors a look into finding a post-retirement experience that fits their personality. Another new resource is the UnRetire Yourself Story Generator, which acts as a more fun-loving and inspirational option that allows participants to fill in the blanks of a story to get excited and creative about what might be ahead in life.
It begins with the choice of three options: My New Career, My Job Interview and Volunteer Day, which leads to a section where they fill out words that will be spun into a story for them, similar to a make-your-own-adventure format.
Jones said he knows when a lot of people start getting their Social Security, they say they are retired, even though most of them around his age were inspired to keep working in some sort of capacity. The quiz and resources, he said, are meant to aid that inspiration and decision, which can sometimes be difficult to decide after working so long in a certain career.
“Many of them are working in a completely different field than they were in for the last 10, 20, 30 years, and most of them will tell you they do it because they want to give back or they need to be challenged. It does keep you young when you have to get up in the morning, and you have a purpose,” Jones said.
Jones, who informs people about the “unretirement” services at many of his classes and seminars across Birmingham and Vestavia, said the website has a wealth of “easy-to-use” resources and articles for people to browse through, and it gives individuals an opportunity to get started and make a plan.
“I introduce this resource in all the venues that I teach to make sure people know that is an option, if not for themselves, for someone in their family that might be need it,” he said.
Jones said Home Instead recognized the need to put these materials out there for everyone to use for free, especially older Americans and their families.
Another Home Instead employee, Vestavia resident and recent retiree, Bob Tarrant, retired at 65 years old after a 35-year career in banking.
Photo courtesy of Home Instead Senior Care
Home Care Consultant Jay Jones conducts a continuing education course for the healthcare community in September at UAB.
Only a year before, he had moved his parents into an assisted living housing unit. At that point, he said he began to get a taste of what caregiving was about, and shortly after, his dad passed away. For about three years after that, he focused on living the retirement life he always had in mind: fishing, reading books and traveling.
Eventually, he said, he even considered running for Chamber of Commerce again, but instead ran into a friend working for Home Instead, who began to tell him about what she did with the company and caring for people.
He decided to fill out an application online to work part-time transporting and caring for seniors signed up for services.
“At this point, I was 69 years old, and so I went to the training, and before you know it, I’m out there being a caregiver to people my age,” he said, “and I’ve been there now four years.”
Jones said earlier this year, he remembers watching a film of his grandmother and grandfather and thinking they seemed so old, even though they were the age he is now. He said he didn’t “feel that age or look that age,” and knew he was perfectly capable of going back to work — and very much wanted to.
“I think [retirees are re-entering the workforce] because we are living longer, and most of us are healthier at age 65 than our parents or our grandparents,” Tarrant said. “… When it’s time for us to quit and get Social Security, then it’s like, ‘Wait a minute, I’m bored, and I’m still capable of contributing to society, so why aren’t I doing that?’”
For many people, Jones said, maintaining a sense of purpose after retirement is an important component to continue living a happy and healthy life, which is often what other retirees who go back to work tell him.
The extra income might be a remedy for boredom, Jones said, or people may choose to reenter the workforce so they can delay their Social Security benefits, and eventually get a higher pay out. It’s also a great antidote for “babble brain,” he said.
“You can watch so much TV, and then your brain just turns to babble,” Jones said.
He said being involved in the community and staying active gives seniors the ability to engage socially, emotionally and even live longer.
“The major reason I work is I feel like I’m contributing something and giving back,” Tarrant said, not for the money he makes. He averages about 20 hours a week, with 4-to-6 -hour shifts about three or four times a week. He keeps his schedule light and is always allowed to take off for vacation when needed.
Even still, Tarrant said, at first he wasn’t sure if he was going to go back to work.
“I was in good health, and I really had not planned on going back to work,” he said. “ ... I was looking for something to do. I really didn’t want to be back in a heavy duty, 40-hour a week job with the pressure, though.”
Plus, he said, “It just makes you feel good that you are helping people in need.”
To learn more, go to unretireyourself.com.
