BLS WORKING PAPERS

U.S. DEPARTMENT OF LABOR 

Bureau of Labor Statistics 

OFFICE OF PRODUCTIVITY AND TECHNOLOGY 

 

Are Traditional Retirements a Thing of the Past? New Evidence on Retirement Patterns 

and Bridge Jobs 

 

Kevin E. Cahill, Tinari Economics Group 

Michael D. Giandrea, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 

Joseph F. Quinn, Boston College 

 Working Paper 384

 September 2005 

 

All views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the U.S. 

Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Are Traditional Retirements a Thing of the Past? 

New Evidence on Retirement Patterns and Bridge Jobs

Kevin E. Cahill, Ph.D. 

(corresponding author) 

Tinari Economics Group 

500 7th Avenue, 10th Floor 

New York, NY 10018 

Email: kcahill@tinarieconomics.com

Phone: (212) 201-0938 

Michael D. Giandrea, Ph.D. 

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics 

Office of Productivity and Technology 

Postal Square Building, Room 2180 

2 Massachusetts Ave., NE 

Washington, DC 20212-0001 

Email: giandrea.michael@bls.gov

Phone: (202) 691-5628 

Joseph F. Quinn, Ph.D. 

Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 

Gasson Hall 103 

Boston College 

Chestnut Hill, MA 02467-3803 

Email: joseph.quinn@bc.edu

Phone: (617) 552-2393 

September 19, 2005 

* All views expressed in this paper are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the 

views or policies of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Abstract 

Purpose: This paper investigates whether permanent, one-time retirements are coming to 

an end just as the trend towards earlier and earlier retirements did nearly 20 years ago. We 

explore how common bridge jobs are among today’s retirees, and how uncommon traditional 

retirements have become. Methods: Using data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), 

we explore the work histories and retirement patterns of a cohort of retirees aged 51 to 61 in 

1992 over a ten-year time period in both a cross-sectional and longitudinal context. Bridge job 

determinants are examined using bivariate comparisons and a multinomial logistic regression 

model of the bridge job decision. Results: We find that one-half to two-thirds of the HRS 

respondents with full-time career jobs take on bridge jobs before exiting the labor force 

completely. We also find that bridge job behavior is most common among younger respondents, 

respondents without defined-benefit pension plans, and respondents at the lower- and upper-end 

of the wage distribution. Implications: The evidence suggests that changes in the retirement 

income landscape since the 1980s appear to be taking root. Going forward, traditional 

retirements will be the exception rather than the rule. 

Key words: Economics of Aging, Partial Retirement, Gradual Retirement 

JEL No. J26, J14, J32, H55

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1. Introduction 

Are permanent, one-time retirements coming to an end just as the trend towards earlier 

and earlier retirements among older American men did nearly twenty years ago? The leading 

edge of the Baby Boomers, those born between 1946 and 1964, will approach traditional 

retirement age in less than five years and, along with the transition, retirement as we know it will 

be redefined. The reason is simple: fundamental changes in Social Security, private pensions, 

health, and longevity mean that many Americans will be unable to finance twenty or more years 

of leisure later in life without a significant reduction in living standards. Some who can afford it 

may prefer not to retire in the stereotypical manner. Others might not have a choice. Whatever 

the reason, many older Americans may delay complete retirement and exit the labor force 

gradually. 

Since the 1960s, increasing prosperity and more generous public and private retirement 

programs have meant that many older workers could retire early, supported by Social Security, 

defined-benefit pension plans, and savings. Each of these sources, however, may look much 

different in the future. Social Security is facing financial shortfalls over the second half of the 

traditional seventy-five year window, which will likely lead to some combination of lower 

benefits and replacement rates, later ages for normal and perhaps early retirement benefit 

eligibility, and higher Social Security taxes or other government revenues. Traditional definedbenefit (DB) pensions are being replaced by defined-contribution (DC) plans like 401(k)s, with 

their attendant investment risks. Finally, private savings, as reported in the U.S. National 

Income and Product Accounts, are at their lowest levels since the Great Depression.1

 With 

reductions in these income sources, traditionally considered the three pillars of retirement 

 

1

 U.S. National Income and Product Accounts, Table 5.1, Saving and Investment, line 33. 

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income, and possible cutbacks in Medicare, many Americans will have to choose between 

working longer or enduring a lower standard of living during their retirement years. 

Older Americans appear to be adjusting to the new retirement landscape already. A near 

century-long trend towards earlier retirement among men came to a halt in the mid-1980s. Labor 

force participation rates among older men have been relatively flat since then, and have 

increased in recent years. Among women, the decline in earlier retirements and the increase in 

women entering the labor force in the post-war period have resulted in large increases in labor 

force participation among older women over the past twenty years.2 Retirement is also 

becoming more of a process than a single event. A significant number of individuals, previously 

estimated at one-third to one-half of retirees, take on short-duration or part-time jobs after 

leaving full-time career (FTC) employment. These jobs bridge the gap between FTC 

employment and complete labor force withdrawal, and are aptly called “bridge jobs.” 

While the existence of bridge job employment is not news, the degree to which it is 

utilized by today’s older workers is. Much of the recent research on bridge jobs is based on data 

from the late 1990s, just before some fundamental changes in the retirement environment 

occurred. The stock market decline of 2000, combined with a continuing shift towards 401(k) 

pension plans, led to an unexpected decline in older Americans’ retirement assets. Moreover, the 

Social Security normal retirement age began its legislated gradual increase from age 65, for those 

who turned 62 before 2000, to age 66, for those who turned 62 in 2005. This is equivalent to an 

across-the-board benefit cut, providing an additional incentive to remain in the labor force 

longer. Private savings rates also continued their decline, albeit with a slight uptick in the last 

 

2

 See Quinn (2002). Labor force participation rates of American men aged 65 to 69 declined from 43 percent in 

1965 to 25 percent in 1985 (a nearly 60 percent decline in only two decades) and then increased back to 33 percent 

by 2004, with half of that increase occurring during the last 5 years. Participation rates for women aged 60 to 64 for 

the same three years are 33 percent, 33 percent and then 45 percent and rising in 2004. 

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year or so. Anecdotal evidence suggests that these events led to an increase in the labor force 

participation rates of older Americans, in the form of delayed retirement or, in some cases, labor 

market reentry after retirement.3

 

Recent waves of the Health and Retirement Study (HRS), the premier data set for the 

study of older Americans’ retirement behavior, now enable an up-to-date analysis of the status of 

bridge job activity. The HRS now contains information on the retirement patterns of individuals 

aged 51 to 61 in 1992 for a full ten years, spanning the run up in the stock market in the late 

1990s, its subsequent decline, and the continuing recovery. Using these data we explore whether 

the majority of retirees still exit the labor force in the stereotypical fashion, or if the majority 

now retire gradually, in stages, utilizing bridge jobs on the way out. 

 This paper is structured as follows. The next section discusses how the retirement 

landscape has changed over the past two decades, most notably, the abrupt end of the trend 

towards earlier and earlier retirement among older men. We then document the extent of bridge 

job employment among today’s retirees and those on the cusp of retirement, to see if their 

behavior resembles that of their predecessors. We conclude that changes in the retirement 

income landscape since the 1980s are beginning to have an effect and, as a consequence, 

traditional retirements in the form of a one-time, permanent event have become the exception 

rather than the rule. 

2. Background 

The average retirement age, defined here as the youngest age at which half of the 

population is out of the labor force, declined dramatically among men during the 20th century, 

 

3

 Coile and Levine (2004) challenge the notion that the decline in stock market value in 2000 explains rising labor 

force participation rates of older Americans. 

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from age 74 in 1910 to age 70 in 1950, age 65 in 1970 and age 62 by 1985.4

 The decline is 

predominantly a result of increasing prosperity over the past century and the growth of public 

and private retirement programs. As productivity and real wages increased, workers spent a 

portion of their increased wealth on leisure, including earlier retirement. Since the mid-1980s, 

however, the average retirement age for American men has remained relatively unchanged. 

While there is some debate over the cyclical or permanent nature of this break in trend, it is clear 

that the retirement landscape has changed. The end of mandatory retirement for most workers in 

1986, the shift away from traditional DB pension plans towards employee-controlled DC plans, 

improvements in health and longevity, and changes in the physical nature of jobs have all created 

incentives for workers to stay in the labor force longer, either by remaining on their career jobs, 

by taking on bridge jobs, or both. 

Many studies have explored the factors that affect retirement decisions, such as age, 

health and health insurance status, and Social Security and private pension eligibility and 

incentives.5

 Other studies have focused on retirement patterns. Honig and Hanoch (1985) 

investigated partial retirement trends using Retirement History Study (RHS) data from 1967 to 

1973. They found that the decision concerning whether or not to participate in the labor market 

is of primary importance to older workers, while the choice between part-time or full-time work 

is secondary. Ruhm (1990) used the same source to analyze partial retirement and found that the 

majority of workers leave career jobs for partial retirement at some point in their working lives. 

He argued that pension status and Social Security regulations have little effect on this decision 

 

4

 See Quinn (2002). 

5

 Anderson, Gustman, and Steinmeier (1997), Coile and Gruber (2000), Herz (1995), Munnell, Cahill, and Jivan 

(2003), Quadagno and Quinn (1997), Quinn (1977), Ruhm (1995), Samwick (1998), and Stock and Wise (1990), 

have studied the relationships among financial variables and labor force participation. Likewise, Blau and Gilleskie 

(1997), Gruber and Madrian (1994), Madrian (1994), and Smith (2004) have considered how health status and 

health insurance status affect the retirement decisions of older American workers. 

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and that uncertainty concerning retirement income and institutional job restrictions (e.g. 

requiring full-time employment for most jobs) are potential causes.6

Quinn (1999) studied retirement patterns and bridge jobs in the 1990s. Using the first 

three waves of the HRS, Quinn estimated that between one-third and one-half of older 

Americans would take on bridge jobs before exiting the labor force completely. Quinn also 

found that age, health status, type of pension, and pension eligibility are all important 

determinants of whether an individual is employed in either a FTC job or a bridge job, or is 

retired. He concludes that “retirement patterns in America are much richer and more varied than 

the stereotypical one-step view of retirement suggests.”7

Chen and Scott (2002) and Purcell (2005) both noted that several forms of gradual 

retirement through bridge jobs are currently available to workers, including job sharing, reducing 

work schedules, and the rehiring of retired workers as temporary employees. These studies 

conclude that older workers are remaining in the labor force longer, that retirement patterns are 

diverse, and that financial incentives, health, and uncertainty are key explanatory factors. 

Maestas (2004) observed that more than one-third of retirees in their 50s go back to work after 

retirement, defined as complete withdrawal from the labor force. Most notably, Maestas found 

that returning to the labor force is often anticipated prior to retirement, and that non-traditional 

retirements are often not associated with negative outcomes. 

This paper focuses on the importance of gradual retirement – bridge job behavior – in the 

retirement patterns of today’s older American workers. 

 

6

 Ruhm used a different definition of career job than that used in this paper. A career job according to Ruhm is the 

longest spell of employment with a single firm. 

7

 Quinn (1999), p. 1. 

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3. Design and Methods

 An ideal data set for this research is the Health and Retirement Study. The HRS is a 

nationally representative panel data set designed to understand the antecedents and consequences 

of retirement, to monitor work disability, and to examine the complex relationships among labor 

supply, health, income and wealth, and saving and consumption over time.8

 As shown in Table 

1, the HRS core sample consists of about 12,600 persons (in over 7,600 households) -- 

respondents aged 51 to 61 in 1992 and their spouses, who could be older or younger. 

Oversamples are taken of Hispanics, Blacks, and Florida residents. The first wave of the HRS is 

based on in-home interviews in 1992. Subsequent waves are based on extensive follow-up 

interviews conducted every other year. 

The longitudinal nature of the HRS allows us to examine each respondent’s work history 

and identify bridge jobs. For the purposes of this paper, we define a full-time career job as one 

that consists of at least 1,600 hours per year (“full time”) and that lasts ten or more years 

(“career”). Jobs that follow FTC jobs and precede labor force withdrawal are considered bridge 

jobs.9

 These definitions are consistent with earlier studies investigating bridge job behavior. 

We begin our analysis by focusing on individuals who have had work experience since 

age 49, and obtain a sample of 10,540 HRS respondents. Table 1 describes the entire sample by 

work status and gender. We find that 91 percent of age-eligible men and 77 percent of ageeligible women have worked since age 49. Next, we focus on respondents who have had an 

 

8

 See Juster and Suzman (1995) for a detailed description of the HRS. 

9

 One concern with this methodology is that respondents might not yet have enough tenure in a given wave for a job 

to be considered a career job, even though the respondent may still be working and thereby increasing tenure. In 

some instances, when the individual remains on the job for ten years, these jobs will in fact turn out to be career 

jobs. When subsequent waves do not cover work status through age 62, we assume that the respondent will work on 

the job until age 62. This assumption implies that our estimates of bridge job activity are conservative, since some 

of these individuals will leave their jobs before age 62. 

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identifiable FTC job in their work history. Most of the male sample is retained after this 

restriction, while a larger portion of the female sample is dropped. In total, 80 percent of males 

and 51 percent of females had worked since age 49 and had an identifiable FTC job in their work 

history. In later analysis, we study just those with a FTC job in 1992, which reduces the sample 

further. 

Table 2 illustrates the impact of the definition of a full-time career job on the sample 

sizes of those with a FTC job ever, and those with a FTC job in 1992. While we think that five 

years is too short to be considered a career job and requiring twenty years is too restrictive, eight, 

ten, and fifteen years are all reasonable choices. If the length of tenure required to be on a FTC 

job is reduced from ten to eight years, there is about a 2 percent increase in the number of men 

and women with a FTC job in their employment history, and a 7 percent increase in the number 

on a FTC job in 1992. Conversely, an increase in time required from ten years to fifteen years 

results in about a 6 to 20 percent reduction in the number men and women with a FTC job and on 

one in 1992, respectively. The absence of larger fluctuations in the sample implies that the tenyear tenure requirement for a FTC job is reasonable. These definitional changes alter somewhat 

the number of career vs. bridge jobs, but not the qualitative conclusions discussed below. 

4. Results 

Descriptive Statistics 

We begin with a cross-sectional discussion of retirement patterns. The first step is to 

identify each individual’s status throughout the retirement process, at every survey point. How 

many individuals remain on a FTC job and how many move to a bridge job? How many have 

already exited the labor force and how many return? Table 3 presents the labor force status of 

HRS males and females from 1992 to 2002 for those who have had a FTC job in the past and 

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work experience since age 49. In 1992, 66 percent of the men were still on their FTC jobs, while 

15 percent were employed on bridge jobs and 19 percent were not in the labor force. Among 

women, 73 percent were still on FTC jobs, while the remaining respondents were divided almost 

equally between bridge job employment and absence from the labor force. 

Ten years later, only 14 percent of the (now much older) male sample was still on a FTC 

job and 56 percent had exited the labor force. One-quarter of the male sample was on a bridge 

job in 2002. The story is similar for females. The actual importance of bridge jobs is greater 

than observed in these cross sections, however, because many of the individuals who are out of 

the labor force in a given wave transitioned through a bridge job before exiting. 

The longitudinal nature of the HRS allows us to track individuals’ labor force withdrawal 

patterns over time. To do so, we examine all jobs in a person’s work history that have lasted five 

or more years prior to the wave one (1992) interview. We then examine employment in each 

wave and construct the path from employment to labor force withdrawal for each respondent. 

Table 4 demonstrates the extent of bridge job activity estimated in 1996, when the most recent 

comparable study on bridge job behavior was performed, and then in 2002, based on the most 

recent data.10 The percentage of men either working at a bridge job or who had last worked at a 

bridge job before leaving the labor force increased from 33 percent in 1996 to 50 percent in 

2002. Women experienced a similar increase in the number who were holding or had held a 

bridge job, from 28 to 45 percent. Note that in both cases in 2002, about half of the sample had 

already utilized a bridge job before exiting from the labor force. 

If we concentrate just on those men who had left their FTC jobs by 2002 and whose 

subsequent status we know (27.8 + 25.3 + 22.0 = 75.1% of the male sample), we find that over 

65 percent of them (27.8 + 22.0 = 49.8%; 49.8 / 75.1 = 66.3%) were then employed or were last 

 

10 See Quinn (1999). 

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employed on a bridge job. For women who had left FTC jobs by 2002, the estimate is slightly 

lower, 62 percent (45.3 / 73.0 = 62.0%). 

The increase from 1996 to 2002 does not represent an increase in bridge job behavior 

over these years, but rather it provides a new and better estimate of the extent of bridge job 

activity. In 1996, none of the many respondents still on FTC jobs was counted as having a 

bridge job, even though, as we knew then and now see, many would later take a bridge job 

before exiting the labor force. Between 1996 and 2002, the percentage still on a FTC job 

dropped from 42 to 14 percent among men and from 51 to 17 percent among women. The 2002 

observation of actual bridge job activity (nearly 50 percent) is still an underestimate, because of 

those respondents who have yet to leave their FTC jobs. The larger estimates in the paragraph 

above (62 to 66%) assume that those still on FTC jobs and those for whom bridge job status 

could not be determined in 2002 will behave, on average, like those who have already left their 

FTC job. 

Non-traditional retirements are even more common than these numbers suggest, since 

some individuals who do transition directly out of the labor force from a FTC job may re-enter at 

a later date. We estimate that about 9 percent of individuals who exited the labor force directly 

eventually reentered the labor force at a later date by 2002.

11 Taken together with bridge job 

activity, this implies that traditional one-time, permanent retirements are definitely in the 

minority. 

A key determinant of labor force withdrawal patterns is wage-and-salary employment 

versus self-employment. We find that a larger percentage of self-employed workers, relative to 

wage-and-salary workers, made the first step from a FTC job to a bridge job rather than to no job 

 

11 For a respondent to exit from the labor force he or she must not have a job for at least 2 waves, i.e., a minimum of 

2 years. 

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by 2002. Among those who left their FTC jobs, over three-quarters of self-employed workers 

moved to a bridge job, compared to only half of those who were wage-and-salary workers. This 

may speak to the relative ease with which the self-employed can decrease hours or shift to a new 

job.

Self-employed workers also remained working longer and switched job types more often 

later in life compared to wage-and-salary workers. Nearly half of self-employed FTC workers 

who took on a bridge job were still employed in 2002 compared to only 37 percent of wage-andsalary workers. In addition, while only 15 percent of wage-and-salary workers who took a 

bridge job have taken on a job in self-employment, 40 percent of self-employed FTC workers 

took on a wage-and-salary bridge job. A similar story is observed with those who had taken 

bridge jobs but were out of the labor force by 2002. 

Covariates of Bridge Job Activity 

The first wave of the HRS provides detailed information about health status, pension 

status, wealth, and many other characteristics related to retirement decisions. Because some of 

these variables are time variant, we cannot rely on these measures to examine exits from FTC 

jobs that took place prior to 1992. Therefore, we base our analysis of bridge job determinants on 

those individuals who were on FTC jobs in 1992, and we follow their exit patterns through 2002. 

Table 5 presents the first transitions from FTC jobs by the age of the respondent. Older 

workers who leave their career jobs are less likely to transition to bridge job employment, as 

indicated in the last column by the ratio of bridge job employees to all individuals who made a 

transition. In 2002, of those who moved from a career job, 44 percent of males aged 65 or older 

had moved to a bridge job, compared to 59 percent of those aged 62 to 64 and 63 percent of men 

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under age 62. The difference is even more pronounced among women, where the difference 

ranges from 78 percent for females under age 60, about 60 percent for those aged 60 to 64, and 

only 41 percent among women aged 65 years and older. Bridge job behavior is much more 

common among those initiating the retirement process at a younger age. 

Table 6 examines the health status in 1992 of HRS respondents who were on FTC jobs in 

1992, and stratifies the results according to their first transition from the FTC job. Three 

measures of health status are shown in the table: the presence of a work-limiting condition, a 

subjective health assessment, and a summary of activities of daily living for which respondents 

have had a lot of difficulty. Men and women who left their career jobs and were in excellent or 

very good health took on bridge jobs in 55 to 60 percent of cases (see last column.) Those who 

departed with self-assessed fair or poor health made the transition to bridge jobs less than 40 

percent of the time. 

Both men and women who had FTC jobs in 1992 and who reported a work-limiting 

health condition are much more likely to have exited the labor force by 2002 than those without 

such conditions. They are also less likely to remain on their FTC job, and less likely to have 

moved to a bridge job if they did leave their career job. Respondents also reported the number of 

daily activities for which their health condition limits them from completing. Not surprisingly, 

men and women with two or fewer ADL limitations are more likely to remain in their FTC job or 

move to a bridge job, and less likely to have left the labor force altogether. 

These estimates underestimate the importance of health in job transition late in life, since 

they include only those still on a FTC job in 1992. Many of those with serious health issues 

would have left their career jobs and likely the labor force before 1992. 

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Earlier studies have shown the impact of the availability of health insurance coverage 

beyond the FTC job on retirement patterns.12 Table 7 reports first transitions of respondents by 

health insurance status on their FTC jobs. Because individuals aged 65 and older are eligible for 

Medicare, the sample in Table 7 includes only those who are younger than 65 in 2002. We find 

that men and women who have no health insurance on their FTC job are most likely to take a 

bridge job if they leave their career job, as 78 percent of these uninsured men and 74 percent of 

the women did. Also, both men and women who lose health insurance coverage when leaving a 

FTC job are more likely to exit the labor force completely than other workers in the sample.13 

Men with defined-benefit (DB) pension plans, which often contain age-specific financial 

incentives to leave the job, are less likely to remain on their FTC jobs in 2002 than others, are 

more likely to have left the labor force, and are least likely to move to a bridge job when a 

transition is made. As seen in Table 8, men with no pension or with DC plans only on their FTC 

jobs are more likely to remain on that job than are men with a DB plan. While only 41 percent 

of males who left a career job with a DB pension take a bridge job, nearly 60 percent of their 

counterparts with no pension and 54 percent with a DC pension do so. Among women, those 

with DB pension plans only are the most likely to have left the labor force, and the least likely to 

utilize a bridge job on the way out. 

 

12 See Gruber and Madrian (1995) and Madrian (1994). Health insurance status is based on three sources of 

coverage: government-provided health insurance, such as Medicare and Medicaid, private health insurance, and 

employer-provided health insurance, based on the individual's employer or a spouse's employer. Portability requires 

that health insurance coverage is maintained after an individual leaves his or her current job. Government-provided 

insurance, private health insurance, and insurance through a spouse's employer are all unaffected by the 

respondent’s employment status and are considered portable. Health insurance through an individual’s employer is 

only considered portable if the respondent indicates that the employer-provided coverage will be maintained in 

retirement. Respondents with no health insurance are captured with a separate variable indicating whether a 

respondent has health insurance. 

13 Health insurance may be a proxy for other personal or job characteristics. There is much that is not being held 

equal here, especially age. 

- 14 -
Finally, bridge jobs appear to be more common at both ends of the wage distribution. As 

shown in Table 9, low-wage and high-wage individuals are more likely to take on bridge jobs 

when making a transition than are those in the middle of the wage distribution (see last column). 

This result is consistent with expectations. Among low-wage individuals, many take on bridge 

jobs out of financial necessity while individuals at the upper end of the wage distribution, many 

of whom could afford to retire, may choose bridge jobs for quality of life reasons. The same 

conclusion appears when we look at the occupational status of the FTC job. Both individuals in 

white collar, highly-skilled jobs and individuals in blue collar, non-highly-skilled jobs are more 

likely to take on bridge jobs after leaving FTC employment. 

Multivariate Analysis 

The cross-sectional analyses above indicate that bridge job behavior is very common 

among older Americans, especially among those who are relatively young and healthy, who are 

without health insurance, and who are at the lower or upper ends of the wage or occupation 

spectrum. Bridge jobs are less common among those with DB pension plans on their career 

jobs. This section examines bridge job determinants in a multivariate context.14 We model the 

transitions from FTC jobs among HRS respondents who were on a FTC job in 1992 and for 

whom later employment status could be identified. Each worker faces three choices between 

1992 and 2002; he or she can continue on the career job, can leave the career job for a bridge job, 

or can exit the labor force. The coefficients of the model are estimated for men and women 

separately using multinomial logistic regression. Tables 10a and 10b present marginal effects 

estimated at sample means. 

 

14 The empirical specification is based on the framework of Quinn (1999). Details are available from the authors. 

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As expected, younger men and women are more likely than others to remain on their FTC 

jobs (the negative and significant coefficients increase with age) as are individuals in excellent or 

very good health. Bridge job behavior is also more common among the youngest men and 

women and declines with deteriorating health status. Men and women with dependent children 

(and college tuitions ahead?) are more likely to remain on their career jobs than others (about 6 

percentage points more likely), and women (but not men) who do transition are more likely to 

move to a bridge job. 

Another important finding is that men with a DB pension plan are significantly less likely 

to remain in a FTC job and less likely to take a bridge job. This FTC job effect, oddly, is not 

found among the women, though the bridge job effect is. Self-employed men and women are 

much more likely than others to remain on their FTC jobs, and self-employed men are more 

likely to take on a bridge job when a job transition is made. The “u-shaped” pattern of bridge job 

behavior by occupational status is flattened at one end in the multivariate context, as whitecollar, high-highly skilled men are more likely than others to take on a bridge job, while bluecollar, not-highly-skilled men are not. Occupational status is not statistically significant among 

women. Both men and women who maintain their health insurance status with a transition from 

their FTC job, either because health insurance is portable or because they are not covered, are 

more likely to take on a bridge job compared to those who would lose their health insurance 

coverage. The impact, however, is only statistically significant among the uninsured, with a 

marginal effect of more than 10 percentage points. 

Owning one’s own home has no discernible effect on the decision to remain on the FTC 

job, but it does reduce the chances of taking a bridge job when one leaves the career job. Wealth 

effects are inconsistent, as is often the case in such empirical work, perhaps because those with 

- 16 -
high wealth also have an unmeasured taste for work, which is one of the reasons that they have 

accumulated wealth. 

 The multivariate analysis confirms the cross-sectional descriptive results. Bridge job 

behavior is more common among younger retirees, among the healthy and the self-employed and 

among those without DB pension plans. One prediction is that, as DB plans continue to decline 

in importance, bridge job behavior will become more common, as already appears to be the case. 

4. Discussion 

 Research from the 1990s demonstrated that, at a minimum, about one-third to one-half of 

older workers utilize bridge jobs before completely withdrawing from the labor force. Six more 

years of data are now available to estimate the actual extent of bridge job employment. Using 

ten years of HRS data, we conclude that about one-half of respondents with FTC jobs have 

already taken bridge jobs. Of the vast majority who had already left their career jobs by 2002, 

between 62 and 66 percent moved to a bridge job rather than directly out of the labor force. 

What does the importance of bridge job employment mean for individuals and the 

country as a whole? Overall, continued work is generally good news, as more individuals 

remain productive late in life, fewer are dependent on public programs, and the nation has more 

goods and services to distribute among an aging population. From an individual perspective, 

however, the story is more complicated. For some, bridge job employment and work later in life 

create the potential for more satisfying years than complete labor force withdrawal would 

provide. People remain engaged in the world of work and with their former or, more often, with 

new colleagues. Bridge jobs can provide older Americans with the opportunity to try something 

different, earn wages and experience in a different line of work, and generate discretionary 

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income, augmenting Social Security, pension income and returns from savings. For others, 

however, at the lower end of the socio-economic scale, bridge jobs are more likely to be an 

unfortunate financial necessity, and may involve physically demanding work that signals a bleak 

and undesirable situation at the twilight of their work lives. 

Nonetheless, bridge job employment has the potential to be greatly advantageous to many 

older Americans, to the firms wise enough to tap these productive and experienced workers, and 

to the country as a whole. The key is to understand better how and why older Americans choose 

to leave the labor force, and how best to harness the desire of many of them to continue working 

beyond traditional retirement ages. This paper takes a first step and assesses just how prevalent 

these nontraditional retirement patterns are today. We find that traditional retirement has 

become the exception, not the rule, and that for a majority of older Americans, retirement is a 

process, often over many years, and not a single event. 

- 18 -
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Table 1

Sample Size

by Gender and Work Status

Men Women Total

Participated in wave 1

n 5,869 6,783 12,652

Worked since age 49

n 5,344 5,196 10,540

% of HRS core 91.1% 76.6% 83.3%

Worked since age 49 and 

 had FTC job

n 4,695 3,472 8,167

% of HRS core 80.0% 51.2% 64.6%

On FTC in 1992

n 3,056 2,514 5,570

% of HRS core 52.1% 37.1% 44.0%

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 2

Percent of Sample with Full-Time Career Jobs

by FTC Definition and Gender

Males

Tenure Required for FTC Designation (years)

5 8 10 15 20

Worked since age 49

and had FTC job

n 4,817 4,760 4,697 4,537 4,466

% HRS Core 82.1 81.1 80.0 77.3 76.1

On FTC job in 1992

n 3,488 3,277 3,056 2,439 1,986

% HRS Core 59.4 55.8 52.1 41.6 33.8

Females

Tenure Required for FTC Designation (years)

5 8 10 15 20

Worked since age 49

and had FTC job

n 3,666 3,578 3,470 3,160 2,935

% HRS Core 54.0 52.7 51.2 46.6 43.3

On FTC job in 1992

n 2,857 2,710 2,514 1,959 1,428

% HRS Core 42.1 40.0 37.1 28.9 21.1

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 3

Labor Force Status, by Year and Gender

Individuals with a Full-Time Career Job in Their Work History

and Work Experience Since Age 49

Males

Full Time Not in Don't

n Career Job Bridge Job Labor Force Know

1992 4,695 65.9% 14.5% 19.0% 0.7%

1994 4,353 52.6% 18.5% 28.3% 0.6%

1996 4,044 42.4% 22.2% 34.7% 0.7%

1998 3,833 27.0% 29.3% 42.7% 1.0%

2000 3,573 18.0% 33.0% 47.7% 1.3%

2002 3,414 14.4% 25.3% 55.6% 4.7%

Females

Full Time Not in Don't

n Career Job Bridge Job Labor Force Know

1992 3,472 72.7% 14.1% 12.7% 0.5%

1994 3,272 62.0% 17.4% 20.2% 0.5%

1996 3,102 51.4% 19.2% 28.9% 0.5%

1998 2,984 32.6% 29.9% 36.3% 1.3%

2000 2,855 19.4% 38.3% 40.7% 1.7%

2002 2,795 17.4% 27.7% 49.7% 5.2%

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 4

Current Employment Status in 1996 and 2002, by Gender

Individuals with a Full-Time Career Job in Their Work History

and Work Experience Since Age 49 (horizontal percentages)

1996

Full Time Bridge Don't

n Career Job Job Know

Men, Working 2,625 42.4% 22.7% 0.7%

Men, Nonworking, Last job was 1,419 22.2% 10.4% 1.5%

Total 4,044 64.6% 33.1% 2.2%

Women, Working 2,203 51.4% 18.7% 0.5%

Women, Nonworking, Last job was 899 19.2% 8.8% 1.3%

Total 3,102 70.6% 27.5% 1.8%

2002

Full Time Bridge Don't

n Career Job Job Know

Men, Working 1,522 14.4% 27.8% 4.7%

Men, Nonworking, Last job was 1,892 25.3% 22.0% 5.8%

Total 3,414 39.7% 49.8% 10.5%

Women, Working 1,392 17.4% 24.9% 5.2%

Women, Nonworking, Last job was 1,403 27.7% 20.4% 4.4%

Total 2,795 45.1% 45.3% 9.6%

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 5

First Transitions from Career Jobs by 2002

Those with Full-Time Career Jobs in 1992, by Gender and Age

(horizontal percentage and ratio)

Still on Moved to Moved to Don't Ratio of Bridge Job/

Age in 2002 n Career Job Bridge Job No Job Know (Bridge Job + No Job)

Men

 < 60 92 28.5% 37.9% 22.2% 11.4% 63.1%

 60-61 461 24.7% 43.5% 24.8% 7.1% 63.7%

 62-64 819 18.6% 43.0% 30.2% 8.3% 58.7%

 65+ 1,348 9.7% 37.5% 47.5% 5.3% 44.1%

 Total 2,720 15.5% 40.2% 37.6% 6.7% 51.7%

Women

 < 60 542 26.5% 52.8% 15.0% 5.6% 77.9%

 60-61 402 26.9% 39.2% 25.6% 8.3% 60.5%

 62-64 596 15.3% 46.0% 32.4% 6.4% 58.7%

 65+ 770 8.1% 35.9% 52.6% 3.5% 40.6%

 Total 2,310 17.6% 43.1% 33.7% 5.6% 56.1%

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 6

First Transitions from Career Jobs by 2002

Those with Full-Time Career Jobs in 1992,

by Gender and Health Status in 1992

(horizontal percentage and ratio)

Still on Moved to Moved to Don't Ratio of Bridge Job/

n Career Job Bridge Job No Job Know (Bridge Job + No Job)

Health Condition That 

Limits Work

 Men

 no 2,811 14.6% 36.8% 36.1% 12.5% 50.5%

 yes 268 8.4% 35.7% 43.0% 12.9% 45.4%

 Women

 no 2,482 16.5% 40.8% 31.9% 10.9% 56.1%

 yes 182 10.7% 36.1% 44.2% 9.0% 45.0%

Subjective Health 

 Men

 excellent or very good 1,771 16.8% 39.0% 32.5% 11.7% 54.5%

 good 936 10.3% 34.9% 40.9% 13.9% 46.0%

 fair or poor 375 9.5% 28.5% 47.8% 14.1% 37.4%

 Women

 excellent or very good 1,639 17.9% 42.9% 29.0% 10.2% 59.7%

 good 742 14.3% 38.2% 36.6% 10.9% 51.1%

 fair or poor 283 8.5% 29.4% 48.0% 14.1% 38.0%

Number of ADLsa

 with 

Lots of Difficulty

 Men

 0 2,306 14.9% 37.7% 34.5% 12.9% 52.2%

 1-2 679 12.3% 33.9% 41.7% 12.1% 44.8%

 3-4 72 6.0% 28.2% 54.7% 11.1% 34.0%

 5+ 25 2.4% 36.6% 53.7% 7.3% 40.5%

 Women

 0 1,712 16.2% 41.3% 31.0% 11.5% 57.1%

 1-2 797 16.8% 40.1% 34.3% 8.8% 53.9%

 3-4 111 11.3% 33.0% 42.0% 13.7% 44.0%

 5+ 44 9.9% 31.4% 50.4% 8.3% 38.4%

a

 Activities of Daily Living

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 7

First Transitions from Career Jobs by 2002

Those with Full-Time Career Jobs in 1992,

by Gender and Health Insurance Status on 1992 Job

Age < 65 in 2002

(horizontal percentage and ratio)

Still on Moved to Moved to Don't 

Health Insurance Status n Career Job Bridge Job No Job Know (B

Men Not covered on career job 147 25.1% 50.6% 14.3% 10.1%  "Covered and would maintain" some coverage 551 22.2% 43.0% 25.9% 8.9%  "Covered and would lose" coverage 686 20.3% 41.1% 31.7% 6.9% Women

 Not covered on career job 162 14.6% 59.8% 21.5% 4.1%  "Covered and would maintain" some coverage 883 22.6% 46.2% 24.0% 7.2%  "Covered and would lose" coverage 606 23.2% 43.2% 26.2% 7.4% Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 8

First Transitions from Career Jobs by 2002

Those with Full-Time Career Jobs in 1992,

by Gender and Pension Status on 1992 Job

(horizontal percentage and ratio)

Still on Moved to Moved to Don't R

Pension Status n Career Job Bridge Job No Job Know (B

Men No pension 962 17.6% 40.1% 28.0% 14.3%  Defined benefit plan only 1,345 10.5% 31.5% 45.5% 12.5% 

 Defined contribution plan only 602 16.9% 38.4% 32.3% 12.4%  Defined benefit and defined contribution plan 173 12.2% 50.5% 31.3% 6.0% Women No pension 911 13.6% 46.8% 30.2% 9.5%  Defined benefit plan only 1,056 17.2% 34.7% 36.6% 11.6%  Defined contribution plan only 615 19.0% 37.3% 32.3% 11.4%  Defined benefit and defined contribution plan 82 7.1% 68.2% 16.1% 8.6% Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 9

First Transitions from Career Jobs by 2002

Those on Full-Time Career Jobs in 1992,

by Gender, Wage Rate and Occupational Status

(horizontal percentage and ratio)

Still on Moved to Moved to Don't Ratio of Bridge Jobs/

Wage Rate n Career Job Bridge Job No Job Know (Bridge Job + No Job)

Men

 < $6/hour 266 15.6% 43.0% 30.9% 10.5% 58.2%

 $6 - $10/hour 576 14.3% 38.6% 32.6% 14.4% 54.2%

 $10 - $20/hour 1,394 12.4% 33.1% 42.1% 12.4% 44.0%

 $20 - $50/hour 704 15.0% 38.1% 34.7% 12.2% 52.3%

 > $50/hour 99 21.4% 38.9% 24.7% 15.1% 61.2%

Women

 < $6/hour 437 14.1% 47.7% 28.4% 9.8% 62.7%

 $6 - $10/hour 921 18.0% 38.6% 31.7% 11.7% 54.9%

 $10 - $20/hour 1,035 15.3% 38.0% 36.5% 10.3% 51.0%

 $20 - $50/hour 218 16.4% 41.6% 32.1% 9.8% 56.4%

 > $50/hour 10 0.0% 58.8% 17.6% 23.5% 77.0%

Still on Moved to Moved to Don't Ratio of Bridge Jobs/

Occupational Status n Career Job Bridge Job No Job Know (Bridge Job + No Job)

Men

 White collar, highly skilled 1,046 14.6% 41.7% 31.7% 12.0% 56.8%

 White collar, other 439 15.4% 35.3% 35.8% 13.6% 49.6%

 Blue collar, highly skilled 1,178 12.1% 32.3% 43.3% 12.4% 42.7%

 Blue collar, other 405 17.4% 35.8% 33.5% 13.2% 51.7%

Women

 White collar, highly skilled 866 16.4% 43.9% 30.8% 9.0% 58.8%

 White collar, other 999 17.3% 39.3% 32.5% 10.9% 54.7%

 Blue collar, highly skilled 312 12.8% 34.1% 43.5% 9.6% 43.9%

 Blue collar, other 485 14.4% 40.2% 30.4% 14.9% 56.9%

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 10a

Marginal Effects from Multinomial Logistic Regressiona

Dependent Variable: First Transition from Full-Time Career Job

Men on a Full-Time Career Job in 1992

Full-Time Career Job Bridge Job

coef p-value coef p-value

Age in 1992

 51-54 --------- --------- --------- ---------

 55-59 -0.1023 0.000 -0.0962 0.000

 60-61 -0.1443 0.000 -0.0726 0.040

 62 or older -0.2032 0.000 -0.0708 0.101

Health Status

 excellent/very good 0.0547 0.001 0.0141 0.539

 good --------- --------- --------- ---------

 fair/poor -0.0034 0.896 -0.0943 0.008

Dependent Children 0.0585 0.000 -0.0141 0.592

Pension Status

 no pension --------- --------- --------- ---------

 defined benefit -0.0370 0.041 -0.0565 0.041

 defined contribution 0.0127 0.521 0.0099 0.753

 both -0.0497 0.140 0.0794 0.083

Self Employed 0.0940 0.000 0.0829 0.009

Occupational Status

 White collar, highly skilled --------- --------- --------- ---------

 White collar, other 0.0177 0.437 -0.0690 0.039

 Blue collar, highly skilled 0.0028 0.888 -0.1256 0.000

 Blue collar, other 0.0427 0.095 -0.0976 0.009

Health Insurance

 portable -0.0042 0.789 0.0322 0.162

 not portable --------- --------- --------- ---------

 none -0.0168 0.522 0.1384 0.001

Own Home 0.0246 0.271 -0.0966 0.002

Wealth ($1,000) 0.0028 0.023 0.0026 0.268

Constant -0.1746 0.000 0.1764 0.001

a

 The regressions also control for college, ethnicity, marriage status, wage, region,

and whether a spouse works.

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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Table 10b

Marginal Effects from Multinomial Logistic Regressiona

Dependent Variable: First Transition from Full-Time Career Job

Women on a Full-Time Career Job in 1992

Full-Time Career Job Bridge Job

coef p-value coef p-value

Age in 1992

 51-54 --------- --------- --------- ---------

 55-59 -0.1296 0.000 -0.0615 0.017

 60 or older -0.2602 0.000 -0.0999 0.042

Health Status

 excellent/very good 0.0308 0.086 0.0516 0.041

 good --------- --------- --------- ---------

 fair/poor -0.0412 0.213 -0.0904 0.034

Dependent Children 0.0598 0.002 0.1027 0.001

Pension Status

 no pension --------- --------- --------- ---------

 defined benefit 0.0675 0.001 -0.0922 0.001

 defined contribution 0.0702 0.002 -0.0645 0.040

 both -0.0383 0.495 0.2529 0.000

Self Employed 0.0849 0.005 0.0052 0.904

Occupational Status

 White collar, highly skilled --------- --------- --------- ---------

 White collar, other 0.0097 0.642 -0.0269 0.359

 Blue collar, highly skilled -0.0129 0.672 -0.0412 0.330

 Blue collar, other 0.0091 0.743 -0.0408 0.293

Health Insurance

 portable -0.0166 0.344 0.0306 0.215

 not portable --------- --------- --------- ---------

 none -0.0821 0.020 0.1325 0.004

Own Home -0.0228 0.303 -0.0535 0.087

Wealth ($1,000) -0.0023 0.532 0.0043 0.292

Constant -0.1359 0.000 0.2099 0.000

a

 The regressions also control for college, ethnicity, marriage status, wage, region,

and whether a spouse works.

Source: Authors’ calculations based on the Health and Retirement Study.

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