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Study: Employees prefer gradual retirement

ANN ARBOR, Mich., June 14 (UPI) -- A study of more than 20,000 U.S. adults over 50 finds that most prefer gradual retirement to the idea of working one day and retiring the next.

Three out of every four older workers would prefer to reduce their hours gradually than retire abruptly, according to Bob Willis, a University of Michigan economist.

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But employers' lack of flexibility about working hours usually prevents this -- among working study participants between the ages of 57 and 67, only 13 percent described themselves as "partially retired."

The study found that two-thirds of workers would partially retire if firms allowed them to scale back their hours at the same hourly wage.

If employers allowed partial retirement, the number of employees between 62 and 69 who are completely retired would drop by 10 percent to 15 percent, taking some of the strain off Social Security and raising the rates of experienced workers in the labor force, explained Willis.

Willis presented the findings to policymakers in Washington. His findings are also published in "Growing Older in America: The Health and Retirement Study," a book produced by the National Institute on Aging.

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