The pension reform has established that we will work longer, which should undoubtedly delight the 28% of French people who say they are less “satisfied” after leaving professional life, but it all depends on the type of work and the remuneration.
- 28% of respondents declared themselves less “satisfied with (their) life” after retirement.
- 36% who considered themselves more satisfied and 36% had a stable level of satisfaction between professional life and retirement.
- The level of satisfaction depends on the type of work, satisfaction during professional life and remuneration.
Fewer constraints, more time for yourself and your family… A priori, retirement is a rather happy moment in life. But not for everyone, according to one study published Thursday November 23 over there Directorate of Research, Studies, Evaluation and Statistics (Dress).
28% of French people preferred their professional life
In the work, the 5,500 participating new retirees were questioned about the evolution of their life satisfaction upon transition to retirement, on a scale of 1 to 10. The data was collected in 2021, before the pension reform. . So :
- 28% declared themselves less “satisfied with (their) life” after retirement
- 36% who felt more satisfied
- 36% had a stable level of satisfaction between professional life and retirement
How can these differences be explained? First of all, they depend on the level of satisfaction during working life. Among people who had a level greater than or equal to 8, i.e. 55% of people, they often indicated a deterioration or stabilization of their satisfaction upon transition to retirement (49% among these 55%). Conversely, among the 45% who had a satisfaction rating below 8 before retirement, 30% reported an increase in their satisfaction after retirement.
Retirement: satisfaction depends on work and remuneration
La Dress notes that people who say they are dissatisfied may “regret, in hindsight, their starting age”. But it all depends on the profession and the remuneration. “Low-income retirees and women more often say they regret not having left later to receive a higher pension, unlike workers who, reporting life satisfaction that was already often low before liquidation, do not regret it. for not having postponed their retirement age.”
Regarding the amount of the pension, although 46% of respondents correctly estimated the amount of their pension before leaving professional life, many did not know exactly:
- 28% had no idea
- 20% overestimated it
- 7% underestimated it
“Estimation difficulties more often concern women, workers and people of modest means.indicates Drees. Conversely, executives better anticipate their pension amounts.“
