When Heather Dalcourt decided to retire just over a year ago, she knew she wouldn't be spending her days playing shuffleboard or lawn bowling.
"It's hard to imagine not working at all," says the 64-year old Vancouverite. "It adds a richness to my life and a good feeling of contribution and being valued."
A former senior executive in human resources management, Dalcourt took six months off before opting to return to her field as a consultant.
Now working a few days a month for human capital firm Knightsbridge, she couldn't be happier.
"I'm loving it, I'm really loving it," Dalcourt says. "It's part-time, it's very flexible and I have more discretion as to what I do and when I do it."
More and more people are finding that to be true as the trend to keep working on your own terms gets a big boost from Baby Boomers. No longer a cut-off date, it seems retirement is something that many workers would prefer to ease into.
"Baby Boomers have had a tendency over their careers to work really hard, to work long hours and for them to just stop working one day and do nothing is really hard," explains Danley Yip, division director for Robert Half Management Resources.
"You can only golf so much and many people at or nearing retirement age are really itching to do work and they like the idea of transitioning into retirement."
Indeed, a recent national survey by Robert Half Management Resources in Toronto found that 70 per cent of chief financial officers polled viewed consulting as an attractive segue into retirement.
While the survey only targeted CFOs, Yip believes the results are representative of what is happening across the board in the workforce.
"In all sectors and in all industries this is becoming quite common," Yip says. "We're finding that people are being brought on part-time or on a short-term contract basis and that there's a growing demand for this."
A more gradual bridge to the golden years has obvious benefits for employees - from flexibility to the financial incentives - but experts say it can also be a big bonus for employers.
"For someone hiring a (retiring worker) as a consultant, it's really a win-win situation because of the knowledge and experience they bring to the job," Yip explains. "They can mentor more junior staff, coach co-workers, share ideas and really provide a wealth of knowledge and experience."
With Statistics Canada reporting that, in less than a decade, Canada may have more people at an age where they can leave the labour force than at an age where they can enter it, many companies are now actively recruiting retiring workers.
"The changing demographics mean that employers have to be more creative," says recruitment and retention expert Gail Evans, president of the Wynford Group in Calgary.
"Retaining these workers in some capacity retains their knowledge and experience and can preserve corporate memory, which is a really big issue as more people retire."
Getting workers to stay on - or come back - is also a cost-effective way to get the job done.
"When you bring in someone senior, there is really very little ramp-up time and hand-holding because they are experienced and can just come in and get the work done," Yip adds.
"There are no fixed costs, you can just bring them in as required and you only pay for the hours you use, so it gives companies a lot of flexibility."
Flexibility is also the major attraction for experienced workers, which is why these less rigid work arrangements can be such a good fit.
Shorter days, working from home and more time off are all things for which the knowledge generation is looking.
"It's not just about money, because Boomers don't have to work, so it's about creating an environment they want to be in," Evans explains.
"Employers need to find ways to keep older workers happy so they want to keep working."
Some innovative incentives to keep retirement-age workers on the payroll include wellness accounts, where employees can book time off for health and fitness activities; financial planning assistance, such as free seminars or workshops; and extra leave for charitable work.
"As people get more advanced in their careers, they often want (unpaid) time off for charity work," Evans says. "It's something employers can offer to attract or retain workers and it doesn't really cost them anything - they just have to be supportive of the request for time off and not fire people for wanting more time off."
Hiring back workers, especially in the public sector where retirement ages are set, is not without its challenges. Pensions are a big issue, particularly when they limit what a former worker can do.
"Some organizations are actually having to create new job categories to hire people under so that bringing them back won't jeopardize their pension," says Evans. "Scheduling is also an issue - part-time workers often have other interests and may not be available for extra work every time you need them, but that all has to do with planning and if you plan far enough in advance, you can work around other commitments."
For Dalcourt, whose other commitments include volunteer work, it all comes down to priorities.
"Volunteering is important to me, so if I have a commitment there, I wouldn't change that commitment to work, but if I had a golf game, I could skip it," she says.
"You need to know what your priorities are and have that in your mind so that when the phone call comes (for work) you know what you can take on.
"I think attitudes are changing - even if we just look around ourselves at the grocery store and in retail I see a lot more people like myself behind the counter than we would have a while ago," Dalcourt says. "If there was a stigma to age, I think it's softening so that it's less of a barrier to people who have something to offer."
With a lot to offer herself, Dalcourt plans on keeping one foot in the door for as long as she can.
"It's such a pleasure to do interesting work, to do a good job, and to be valued for doing it so I'll keep working as long as I'm feeling good and I see that being a very long time."
(Tess van Straaten can be reached at tess@businessedge.ca)
