The Generation X
Retirement is not an option, for now
This is an interesting generation. They have many more years to go before retirement.
Early retirement is not an option for most of them.
For many, they are still in their asset acquisition stage. They are building up their investments for the future.
They need money and time to continue building up their retirement nest-egg. With low-interest rates and mediocre investment returns, the pressure to stay longer in jobs will even be more intense.
Forget about government handouts
After huge amounts of pension and welfare payments paid to the Boomer generation, there’s a high likelihood that governments will not have enough money to support this generation.
More qualifying rules will be put in place to make it harder for people to receive government payments.
The fear and stress will be much higher for this generation.
Many are forced to stay longer in jobs that they hate doing. They do so to pay the bills and accumulate savings and investments for their retirement.
Supporting others can be financially draining
For some, they may still be supporting their children, whether teenage and adult. With more adult children staying longer at home, many parents are forced to financially support them.
With housing affordability becoming a critical issue in many countries, many parents are asked to become money lenders to their children just to buy their first homes.
People in Generation X may also be caring for their ageing parents. With the increasing cost of medical and aged care services and accommodation, many in this generation are expected to dig into their savings to support their loved ones, voluntarily and involuntarily.
Preparing to be future-ready
To be job-ready, future-ready, and continue to earn an income, people in this generation know that they have to stay healthy and acquire new skills, experience, and knowledge.
If they do not re-skill and cope with the ever-changing workplace and advances in technology, they can be made redundant very quickly. This gives companies the excuse to hire younger but cheaper workers in their place. Or not hire at all.
This generation will have no choice but to unlearn the old and re-learn new things in order to stay in employment and continue to earn an income.
If they are inflexible and are not able to adapt to the changing circumstances and technology, then they will not be able to future-proof themselves. They will not be future-ready. They will not have any job security.
In fact, constant fear and worry will grip them, which is not a good place to be in.
In summary
The future of work for this generation is very challenging and depressing at the same time.
Apart from the minority who have made it and are self-sustaining, the majority in this generation will have to plan diligently while working longer in jobs they hate.
They work longer to accumulate as much wealth for their retirement. But there’s not much left after financially supporting their children and ageing parents.
To be able to stay in employment much longer, they have to acquire new skills and experience. They may need to invest in themselves. This cost money too.
While we do not plan to fail, failure to plan and complacency will be the recipe for disaster for many in this generation. A bit more thoughtful planning is required for this generation in terms of the future of work and retirement.