Mr. Justin Moran:

Many of the reasons people would like to keep working when they reach their early 60s are financial. They may still have mortgages, loans and family members going to college. They do not necessarily want to work for the rest of their lives but they would like to work an extra few years to be financially secure. From a budgetary or economic perspective, there is also the difference between someone working at the age of 65 and someone being 65 years old and in the social welfare system. One of the challenges we often find when we talk about the issues Age Action wants to raise is that we talk about pensions, home help and home care and nursing homes. We miss the fact sometimes that older people have an enormous amount to contribute. These are skilled, experienced and trained workers. One case that has always stuck in my memory is a HSE nurse who was forced to retire due to a mandatory retirement clause at the same time as we were trying to attract nurses into this country. There is a financial and economic imperative in that regard. Instead of a worker being put on the dole and then the State pension, if he or she wishes to continue working, paying tax and helping to drive the economy forward, that would be a positive thing. We also hear, certainly from research conducted in Britain, that a large part of the reason people want to keep working is social as well. These are their friends and colleagues. People attach a huge sense of value to that. To be told at the age of 65, "It is your birthday, you are done, it is time to go", is a real blow to the self-esteem and pride of the people affected by the situation.