Most Americans want to keep working in retirement. But few retirees actually work.
That finding, from a new survey, illustrates a perennial gap between expectations and reality for American retirees.
Roughly three-quarters of American workers plan to work for pay after they retire, according to the 2026 Retirement Confidence Survey from the Employee Benefit Research Institute. But only 31% of retirees are actually working, the survey found.
In previous EBRI surveys going back to 1999, the finding is remarkably consistent. Year after year, between 70% and 80% of workers say they expect to continue working and drawing pay after they retire. Yet, the share of retirees who work has never ranged higher than 34%.
False hopes about working in retirement speak to fundamental misunderstandings about both retirement and the labor market, experts say.
