How Do Financial Resources Affect the Timing of Retirement after a Job Separation?

Among individuals whose jobless spells end in retirement, most do so within a year after separation. The availability of resources like Social Security retirement benefits, high net worth, and defined benefit pensions appear to encourage more rapid labor force exit and retirement, rather than supporting job seekers during a long search. Surprisingly, retirement is less likely when the unemployment rate is high, though the correlation is substantively small, and UI benefits delay retirement. Poor health and work-limiting disabilities are also associated with more rapid labor force exit and retirement. These results suggest little tolerance for long job searches – regardless of labor market prospects – and indicate that those who can afford to retire w ill do so rather quickly.