Assuming an average retirement age of 61 in the United States, an ADP report finds that 18% of the American workforce could retire within the next five years.
“While there is no guarantee that everyone who reaches the average retirement age will actually stop working, our research indicates that several industries could be facing a significant loss of skilled talent over the next five years,” states Ahu Yildirmaz, senior director of market insights at the ADP Research Institute.
The six industries studied ranged from a low of 9% reaching retirement age in the hospitality industry to a high of 28% in public administration. Other industries included in the study were manufacturing, healthcare, education and retail.
The number of workers reaching retirement age in the next five years varies widely across industries.
Public administration and healthcare services can expect large numbers of employees to leave the workforce, given the fact that workers in these industries have an average age of 47 and 43, respectively. By contrast, the average age for hospitality workers is 34; for retail, it’s 36.
“Retirement data provide a critical glimpse into the future of a company’s workforce,” adds Yildirmaz. “Businesses will want to assess how their own workforces compare to the averages and consider strategies for recruitment and training in order to replace the significant loss of knowledge, experience and company culture that can be expected.”
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