I remember when someone first stood up for me on a bus. I was taken aback but thought fine, a seat. I don’t even blink an eyelid when it happens now.
But of late, I’ve been taken aback by a question that has almost knocked me off my seat: when are you going to retire? Or a version of that.
I recently moderated a panel at an industry conference. I was introduced as a professor and my areas of expertise shared to explain why I was the moderator. The room was full of leaders from the sector many of them close to my age – 62.
In the lunch break I was engaged in an interesting conversation with a female CEO a decade or so younger than me who shocked me by asking if I was retired. It’s not the first time I’ve had this comment or its variation.
Following a research seminar in my academic department a younger colleague asked me, ‘when are you going to retire?’. Again, I was surprised; indeed offended. Did he think I was past my use by date? I don’t. I am an active researcher, awarded teacher, mentor, and leader.
Where are these questions about my retirement coming from? How can I counter them?
Should I start colouring my hair again. Like many other women I stopped dyeing my hair during covid. I love my steel grey colour, but should I dye it to mask my age?
I wonder if men my age are asked when they are going to retire? I am sure older men are not worried about the need to colour their hair. Research shows that women face a double bind when it comes to gender and age, facing age discrimination at earlier ages than men.
The pressure not to look your age fuels a global anti-ageing industry which this year was estimated to be worth 71.7 billion US dollars. The ageing of the population creates an increasing market for anti-ageing products but also creates an economic and fiscal challenge for many governments, including Australia.
Indeed, successive governments have been using policy levers such as raising the pension age and employer incentives to encourage older workers to stay in the workforce for longer. For many women, working longer is essential as they seek to build superannuation balances that the Association of Superannuation Funds of Australia reports are on average 25 percent lower than men’s balances at retirement.
Like me, many women continue working because they love what they do and know they have a contribution to make to their colleagues and organisations. My research with a range of organisations shows that older workers have much to offer and are willing to share their expertise honed over many years with their junior colleagues.
So next time you are chatting with an older colleague or contact resist the urge to ask them when they are retiring. Instead ask them about the next big project they are working on. It might happen to be their retirement plan, but it could also be a product innovation, strategic initiative or creative venture that could benefit you. Either way, it will be sure to open-up the conversation, not close it down.
Whatever reason women over 60 are staying in the workforce, we don’t need questions from colleagues about our retirement plans because no matter how well meaning, it sends a message that we are out place and out of date.