Older Canadians’ retirement confidence is dropping amid longer life expectancies and a rising percentage of employees who continue to work past age 65, according to a new survey by the National Institute on Ageing at Toronto Metropolitan University.
The survey, which polled more than 6,000 Canadians aged 50 and older, found one in five (22 per cent) said they’ve saved $5,000 or less for retirement. A similar percentage reported having between $5,000 and $100,000 (26 per cent) and between $100,000 and $500,000 (24 per cent).
Read: Survey finds confidence key to higher retirement savings
“It’s really concerning when we know people are living longer — some of these individuals might be looking at a 40-year retirement on less than $100,000,” says Talia Bronstein, the NIA’s director of policy. “We’re also looking at a greater reliance on our publicly-supported income systems like old-age security and the guaranteed income supplement.
“It’s concerning for a number of reasons, not only for the well-being of those individuals and their ability to afford food and shelter and all of those important things, but also that strain on public systems.”
Indeed, the survey found more than a third (35 per cent) of Canadians aged 50 and older said they were working, while 52 per cent said they were retired. While employment rates were highest among Canadians aged 50 to 64 (58 per cent), nearly a fifth (15 per cent) of those aged 65 to 79 and four per cent of Canadians aged 80 and older said they’re still working.
Among Canadians aged 50 and older who haven’t yet retired, the percentage of those who feel they can afford to retire at their desired time has declined from 35 per cent in 2022 to 29 per cent in 2025. Over the same period, those who said they can’t afford to retire at their desired time rose from 37 per cent to 43 per cent, while roughly a quarter said they remain unsure.
Read: Six employees discuss their personal roads to retirement
The survey’s findings support the need for employers to provide robust retirement savings vehicles to support workers’ financial wellness, says Bronstein. In addition to providing group retirement plans, employers can also support older employees by adjusting terms of employment to meet individual needs.
“It might be in terms of accessibility [or] more flexibility — some people might be looking for reduced hours, but they want to remain working so the more flexibility that employers can provide these employees can really be beneficial.”
Changes to government policy and legislation around retirement, particularly Canada and Quebec Pension Plan benefits, can also support Canadian workers who are facing uncertainty in retirement. The NIA recently petitioned the federal Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Jobs and Families with a letter advocating for a pension delay guarantee.
Read: OAS increase an opportunity for employees to consider delaying retirement: expert
Bronstein explains this guarantee would support Canadians who delay taking CPP/QPP benefits by reimbursing, in the event of early death, their estate with the difference between the benefits they actually received and what would’ve been received had benefits been claimed at age 60.
In 2020, the NIA published a report that found the average Canadian taking CPP/QPP benefits at age 60 instead of waiting until age 70 can expect to lose more than $100,000 of secure lifetime income.
“It’s a safety net and [the pension delay guarantee] addresses Canadians’ No. 1 fear of delaying CPP/QPP benefits, which is the fear of missing out. It’s not a financial calculus issue that people are having — it’s actually a psychological one. It’s a really exciting opportunity to nudge people in the direction of delaying claiming their CPP/QPP benefits [and] it’s a really powerful thing the government can do with low cost.”
Read: Survey finds Canadian employees delaying retirement due to rising cost of living