At 79, Geoff came out of retirement for an unexpected reason
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When it comes to getting older, it’s easy to think that retirement is the time to take it easy and enjoy the rewards of a lifetime of hard work.
But for one man from North Queensland, leaving the workforce was not the end of his career.
Given the sky-high inflation rates and concerns over the rising cost of living, it’s no surprise that even pensioners are feeling the need to return to full-time work. And 79-year-old Geoff Campbell is no exception.
Mr Campbell has started mowing lawns '14 days a fortnight' to help support his family amid rising cost-of-living pressures.
According to him, he used his credit cards to buy a Jim’s Mowing franchise in May 2022 and filled a gap in the market for lawn-mowing services between Mackay and Townsville.
Mr Campbell’s experience is not unique; some 16 per cent of aged pensioners have returned to the workforce since retiring, and 20 per cent were considering doing so. This is according to a 2022 survey made by National Seniors Australia.
Out of those surveyed, 60 per cent said they started working again for financial reasons, followed by wanting to stay active (15 per cent).
Mr Campbell told reporters that he had made five attempts to retire after a long career in the mining and construction industry. He then decided to go back into the workforce after a series of financial difficulties hit his family.
‘We’d sold the family farm, and that didn’t turn out too well at all,’ he said.
Mr Campbell continued: ‘We have a daughter and a son-in-law over in Perth, and they’ve fallen upon hard times, and they’re thinking of coming back to live with us ... and me trying to be a hero, I decided to buy this franchise and get it going, and hopefully they might take it over in the future.’
He added that all of his family’s expenses had increased significantly, including food, fuel and power.
However, he did emphasise that he loved keeping active through rewarding work and that his business lets him do just that. Mr Campbell also shared that his business has grown to eight employees and is now booked out several months in advance.
‘I had many family arguments about having to mow the lawn when I was a child, but now I really enjoy sitting out there on the ride-on mower under my big hat,’ he revealed before adding that he intends to continue working for ‘as long as he can’ while he’s still ‘enjoying it’.
Based on the statistics, more than 90 per cent of respondents to the National Seniors Australia survey said they were concerned about keeping up with the rising cost of living, and a quarter of those respondents said they were ‘extremely concerned’.
Ian Henschke, CEO of National Seniors Australia, said the number of older Australians ‘severely impacted’ by inflation and rising costs over the next 12 months.
He said: ‘We know that, for around a million Australians, the pension is their sole source of income. It's very difficult to live on, and renting is particularly difficult, and even more so for people who live on their own.’
Mr Henschke also shared that older people living in rural and remote areas, those in larger households and people in their 50s who cannot access their super yet, are especially likely to be struggling.
He also explained that people on a pension who try to return to the workforce after retiring could be taxed heavily.
‘We have a very complicated social security system in Australia, which means that if you do work, you actually get penalised for working if you're on a pension beyond a certain amount.’
Work Bonus Scheme
According to the federal government’s Work Bonus Scheme, individuals on the age pension can earn $11,800 from 1 December 2022 to 31 December 2023, after which the limit will drop down to $7,800.
If someone earns over the work bonus limit, their pension is reduced by 50 cents for every dollar earned over that set amount.
Patricia Sparrow, Chief Executive Officer of the Council on the Ageing (COTA), revealed that almost 20 per cent of men and 11 per cent of women over 65 years old remain in the workforce due to financial reasons.
‘The idea that people might be forced out of retirement purely for financial reasons is a worry,’ she explained before adding that people deserve to live comfortably in retirement.
‘It’s critical too that, if older Australians want to continue in the workforce or re-enter the workforce, they should be able to. Unfortunately, too often we see entrenched ageism and other barriers get in the way of that,’ she shared.
What do you think, members? Are you disappointed that retirement is becoming harder to reach? Feel free to share your thoughts with us in the comments section.
But for one man from North Queensland, leaving the workforce was not the end of his career.
Given the sky-high inflation rates and concerns over the rising cost of living, it’s no surprise that even pensioners are feeling the need to return to full-time work. And 79-year-old Geoff Campbell is no exception.
Mr Campbell has started mowing lawns '14 days a fortnight' to help support his family amid rising cost-of-living pressures.
According to him, he used his credit cards to buy a Jim’s Mowing franchise in May 2022 and filled a gap in the market for lawn-mowing services between Mackay and Townsville.
Mr Campbell came out of retirement to mow lawns in a bid to help support his family. Credit: Skitterphoto/Pexels
Mr Campbell’s experience is not unique; some 16 per cent of aged pensioners have returned to the workforce since retiring, and 20 per cent were considering doing so. This is according to a 2022 survey made by National Seniors Australia.
Out of those surveyed, 60 per cent said they started working again for financial reasons, followed by wanting to stay active (15 per cent).
Mr Campbell told reporters that he had made five attempts to retire after a long career in the mining and construction industry. He then decided to go back into the workforce after a series of financial difficulties hit his family.
‘We’d sold the family farm, and that didn’t turn out too well at all,’ he said.
Mr Campbell continued: ‘We have a daughter and a son-in-law over in Perth, and they’ve fallen upon hard times, and they’re thinking of coming back to live with us ... and me trying to be a hero, I decided to buy this franchise and get it going, and hopefully they might take it over in the future.’
He added that all of his family’s expenses had increased significantly, including food, fuel and power.
However, he did emphasise that he loved keeping active through rewarding work and that his business lets him do just that. Mr Campbell also shared that his business has grown to eight employees and is now booked out several months in advance.
Mr Campbell said he finds mowing people’s lawns ‘rewarding’. Credit: Magic K/Pexels
Based on the statistics, more than 90 per cent of respondents to the National Seniors Australia survey said they were concerned about keeping up with the rising cost of living, and a quarter of those respondents said they were ‘extremely concerned’.
Ian Henschke, CEO of National Seniors Australia, said the number of older Australians ‘severely impacted’ by inflation and rising costs over the next 12 months.
He said: ‘We know that, for around a million Australians, the pension is their sole source of income. It's very difficult to live on, and renting is particularly difficult, and even more so for people who live on their own.’
Mr Henschke also shared that older people living in rural and remote areas, those in larger households and people in their 50s who cannot access their super yet, are especially likely to be struggling.
He also explained that people on a pension who try to return to the workforce after retiring could be taxed heavily.
‘We have a very complicated social security system in Australia, which means that if you do work, you actually get penalised for working if you're on a pension beyond a certain amount.’
Work Bonus Scheme
According to the federal government’s Work Bonus Scheme, individuals on the age pension can earn $11,800 from 1 December 2022 to 31 December 2023, after which the limit will drop down to $7,800.
If someone earns over the work bonus limit, their pension is reduced by 50 cents for every dollar earned over that set amount.
Patricia Sparrow, Chief Executive Officer of the Council on the Ageing (COTA), revealed that almost 20 per cent of men and 11 per cent of women over 65 years old remain in the workforce due to financial reasons.
‘The idea that people might be forced out of retirement purely for financial reasons is a worry,’ she explained before adding that people deserve to live comfortably in retirement.
‘It’s critical too that, if older Australians want to continue in the workforce or re-enter the workforce, they should be able to. Unfortunately, too often we see entrenched ageism and other barriers get in the way of that,’ she shared.
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grateful I am 
