Knowing when to retire and leave the workforce can be easier said than done.
Lee Ann Rawlins Williams, clinical assistant professor at the University of North Dakota, looks into why retirement is changing.
Faculty Bio:
Lee Ann Rawlins Williams, PhD, CRC, CFLE, HS-BCP, is a Clinical Assistant Professor and Program Director of the Undergraduate Rehabilitation and Human Services Program in the Department of Education, Health and Behavior Studies at the University of North Dakota. Her academic and professional work focuses on rehabilitation, mental health, accessibility, aging, and disaster preparedness within educational, community, and human service systems.
Her recent scholarship and professional contributions have expanded nationally and internationally in the areas of disaster preparedness, recovery systems, educator well-being, accessibility, and aging populations. Her work examines the emotional, educational, and systemic impact of disasters on educators, older adults, and individuals with disabilities, with a particular emphasis on inclusive preparedness, continuity of care, mental health integration, and accessible support systems across educational, health, and rehabilitation settings.
She has held leadership roles at the local, state, regional, national, and international levels within rehabilitation and human services organizations. She has published in peer-reviewed journals, contributed to interdisciplinary scholarship, and co-authored two books focused on case and caseload management. Her current work also explores later-life counseling, aging and workforce identity, and resilience across changing life transitions.
Outside of her professional work, she enjoys traveling, attending sporting events, spending time with family, and making memories with her rescue dog, Foxy Roxy.
Transcript:
Retirement is often described as a milestone, a moment when a person leaves work and enters a new stage of life. Yet for many older adults today, the question is no longer simply whether to retire, but how to know when the time is right.
Workforce participation among adults age 65 and older has increased in recent decades. Longer life expectancy, rising healthcare costs, and concerns about retirement security have changed how many people approach later life. As a result, the once-clear markers of retirement have become less certain for many Americans.
But financial considerations tell only part of the story. Work provides more than a paycheck. For many adults, it offers structure, routine, purpose, and identity. In an increasingly disconnected world, work may be one of the few places where people feel socially anchored, connected to others through relationships, shared experiences, and a sense of contribution. For many people, professional roles become closely tied to how they contribute to their families, communities, and society. Deciding when it is time to step away therefore involves emotional and psychological considerations alongside economic ones.
Research on retirement transitions suggests that leaving work is rarely a purely financial decision. Retirement may offer greater freedom, flexibility, and opportunities to pursue other interests. At the same time, work often serves as a source of identity, routine, social connection, and purpose. The challenge for many older adults is not simply deciding whether they can afford to retire but determining when stepping away from work feels right.
The challenge is that retirement no longer follows a clear script. Older adults are often encouraged to remain active, productive, and engaged while also being expected to recognize when it is time to leave the workforce.
Perhaps the most important retirement question today is not whether people should keep working. It is how people determine when the time is right, and what comes next.
Read More:
[The Conversation] - Older Americans are often compelled to keep working – and then criticized for not stepping aside
