{"id":72728,"date":"2026-04-28T12:14:14","date_gmt":"2026-04-28T12:14:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/2026\/04\/28\/posthaste-golden-years-disappearing-as-canadian-seniors-in-the-workforce-hit-all-time-high\/"},"modified":"2026-04-28T12:14:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-28T12:14:14","slug":"posthaste-golden-years-disappearing-as-canadian-seniors-in-the-workforce-hit-all-time-high","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/2026\/04\/28\/posthaste-golden-years-disappearing-as-canadian-seniors-in-the-workforce-hit-all-time-high\/","title":{"rendered":"Posthaste: Golden years disappearing as Canadian seniors in the workforce hit all-time high"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n
\"Thousands
\n<\/p>\n

Canadians\u2019 retirement years are dwindling as a record number of seniors stay in t<\/p>\n

he workforce<\/p>\n

, many by choice, but a growing number from necessity. <\/p>\n

The labour force participation rate of Canadians aged 65 and older rose to 15.2 per cent in 2025, the highest since <\/p>\n

Statistics Canada began tracking t<\/p>\n

he data in 1976. <\/p>\n

That is almost 1.2 million seniors who were either employed or looking for work in 2025 \u2014 more than five per cent of the total workforce. <\/p>\n

And thousands of them have more than one job. StatsCan said 43,500 workers aged 65 years and older worked multiple jobs last year. <\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s senior population has swelled in recent years as the last of that huge cohort, the baby boomers, move into their sixth decade. Almost 20 per cent of Canadians were 65 and older in 2025, a share that is expected to rise close to a quarter of the population in the 2030s. <\/p>\n

But their rise in the workforce isn\u2019t just because there are more seniors \u2014 a higher proportion of them are working as well, said StatsCan. <\/p>\n

This wasn\u2019t always the case. Twenty-six years ago just six per cent of seniors participated in the workforce. That rate has grown steadily since, rising to 14.9 per cent in 2019. After a sharp dip during COVID-19, the rate now exceeds pre-pandemic levels. <\/p>\n

Canada\u2019s average retirement age has changed as well. The average declined steadily from 64.6 years in 1976 to an all-time low of 60.9 years in 1997. But then the trend reversed. <\/p>\n

Last year it hit a record high of 65.4 years. That average is lower for public sector workers at 62.6, but higher for those in the private sector at 66 years. The self-employed work on average until 68.4 years. <\/p>\n

So why are more Canadian seniors continuing to work? For some it is a choice, but for a growing number of others \u2014 almost half \u2014 it is necessity, says Statistics Canada. <\/p>\n

More than 600,000 Canadian seniors live under the poverty line, and according to a report by the Montreal Economic Institute, Ottawa isn\u2019t making it easy for them to work. <\/p>\n

Seniors with no income beyond <\/p>\n

Old Age Security<\/p>\n

qualify for the maximum <\/p>\n

Guaranteed Income Supplement<\/p>\n

of just over $13,000 a year. But if they take a job, every dollar earned after the first $5,000 reduces the GIS benefit by 50 cents, said the report. <\/p>\n

Employment among GIS recipients jumped by 56 per cent between 2014 and 2022. <\/p>\n

\u201cA growing number of seniors are working to make ends meet; the very least Ottawa could do is not punish them for doing so,\u201d says Jason Dean, associate researcher at the MEI and <\/p>\n

author of the report.\u00a0 <\/p>\n

\n

\u00a0Sign up here to get Posthaste delivered straight to your inbox.<\/strong><\/em> <\/p>\n

\n


\"\"<\/strong> <\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

Asian economies are heading for a \u201cfertility shock\u201d as birth rates shift from historically high to below replacement levels, said Bank of America researchers. <\/p>\n

The region\u2019s total fertility rate dropped from about 6 births per woman in the 1960s to 1.87 by 2025, which is below the replacement level of 2.1. <\/p>\n

Japan and Korea are aging the fastest, as both countries fell below replacement fertility in the 1970s and \u201980s. China and Thailand are next in line, but India is younger and did not drop below replacement until 2020. <\/p>\n

The World Bank expects the decline to continue across Asia, with India\u2019s fertility rate falling to 1.8 in 2030 and Singapore and China reaching 1.0. <\/p>\n

An aging population drags on economic growth and the International Monetary Fund estimates that demographic headwinds alone will reduce global GDP growth by about 1.1 percentage points by mid-century, even with pro\u2011birth policy interventions, said BofA. <\/p>\n

\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

    <\/ul>\n

    \u00a0 <\/p>\n

      \n
    • Finance Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne will release the federal government\u2019s spring economic update<\/li>\n
    • Today\u2019s Data:<\/strong> United States Conference Board consumer confidence<\/li>\n
    • Earnings:<\/strong> ARC Resources Ltd., Starbucks Corp., Aecon Group Inc., Toromont Industries Inc., Coca-Cola Co., Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

      \"\"<\/p>\n

      \u00a0 <\/p>\n

      \"\"<\/p>\n

      \u00a0 <\/p>\n

      <\/figure>\n
      \n

      \"\"<\/strong> <\/p>\n

        \n
      • How a collapsing rental market is costing some homeowners more than they bargained for <\/li>\n
      • Bank of Canada expected to hold rates Wednesday, but economists split on whether cuts or hikes loom <\/li>\n
      • Here\u2019s why the government should cut expenditures and not hand out any more fiscal coupons<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
        \n

        \"\" <\/p>\n

        Caroline, 62, is single and planning for retirement in three years, but she is still paying down a $300,000 mortgage. Should she wait until she is 70 to take Canada Pension Plan and Old Age Security or even delay retirement? <\/p>\n

        Family Finance gives her some help with the numbers. <\/p>\n

        \n

        <\/span>
        \n\"\"<\/p>\n

        Interested in energy? The subscriber-only FP West: Energy Insider newsletter brings you exclusive reporting and in-depth analysis on\u00a0 one of the country\u2019s most important sectors. <\/p>\n

        Sign up here. <\/p>\n

        \n
        Are you worried about having enough for retirement? Do you need to adjust your portfolio? Are you starting out or making a change and wondering how to build wealth? Are you trying to make ends meet? Drop us a line at\u00a0<\/span>wealth@postmedia.com<\/span>\u00a0with your contact info and the gist of your problem and we\u2019ll find some experts to help you out while writing a Family Finance story about it (we\u2019ll keep your name out of it, of course).<\/span><\/div>\n
        \n

        McLister on mortgages<\/h2>\n

        Want to learn more about mortgages? Mortgage strategist Robert McLister\u2019s <\/p>\n

        Financial Post column <\/p>\n

        can help navigate the complex sector, from the latest trends to financing opportunities you won\u2019t want to miss. Plus check his <\/p>\n

        mortgage rate page<\/p>\n

        for Canada\u2019s lowest national mortgage rates, updated daily. <\/p>\n

        \n

        Financial Post on YouTube<\/h2>\n

        Visit the Financial Post\u2019s <\/p>\n

        YouTube channel<\/p>\n

        for interviews with Canada\u2019s leading experts in business, economics, housing, the energy sector and more. <\/p>\n

        \n

        Today\u2019s Posthaste was written by Pamela Heaven with additional reporting from Financial Post staff, The Canadian Press and Bloomberg.<\/em> <\/p>\n

        Have a story idea, pitch, embargoed report, or a suggestion for this newsletter? Email us at\u00a0<\/p>\n

        posthaste@postmedia.com<\/p>\n

        . <\/p>\n

        \n
          \n
        • Deficits are climbing across Canada, but this province is awash in red ink<\/li>\n
        • This fiscal edge has helped Canada become the ‘cleanest dirty shirt’ in the G7<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n

          Bookmark our website and support our journalism:<\/strong> Don\u2019t miss the business news you need to know \u2014 add\u00a0financialpost.com\u00a0to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here<\/em> <\/p>\n

          <\/img>
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          Posthaste: Golden years disappearing as Canadian seniors in the workforce hit all-time high<\/a>
          \n
          2026-04-28 12:14:14<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          Canadians\u2019 retirement years are dwindling as a record number of seniors stay in t he workforce , many by choice, but a growing number from necessity. The labour force participation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":72729,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-72728","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-economy"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72728","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=72728"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/72728\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/72729"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=72728"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=72728"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pantheregroup.com\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=72728"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}