Work in Retirement: When a Pension Is No Longer Enough

At around 6:30 am, Mr Krüger pulls crates of bread rolls across the car park of a supermarket in a medium-sized German town. He is 72, formerly an insurance administrator and now a mini-job worker on the early shift. The shop’s neon lights flicker as he stocks the shelves. He jokes with the young colleague on the till, but when she briefly steps away, his eyes settle on the price sign for butter: €2.49. He gives a quiet snort, more to himself than anyone else. “I never used to think about things like that,” he murmurs while putting away the final crate. These days, he calculates the cost of every pack in his head: electricity, heating, and how much of the month is left when the money has already gone.

You can sense it: behind his smile, there is a mental calculator that never stops running.

When retirement exists only on paper

You see them everywhere once you start paying attention: older men with grey beards filling shelves; women in their mid-seventies behind bakery counters despite long being of retirement age; and voices on the bus apologising with “I’m actually retired already” when boarding takes a little longer. They wear safety boots rather than slippers. Many would much rather be sitting at the kitchen table in their pyjamas in the morning than standing in workwear in the car park of a DIY store.

The raw figures are difficult to overlook. In Germany, the number of pensioners in work has risen markedly in recent years, with double-digit percentage increases in some regions. Former tradespeople now deliver parcels, while retired teachers arrange shelves in chemists. The official explanation is often, “I need something to do, otherwise I’ll go mad.” Yet after a few minutes of more searching questions, another sentence usually follows: a quiet, brief one. “My pension alone simply isn’t enough.”

The reasoning is brutally straightforward. Living costs are rising: rent, energy, food and insurance. Pensions may increase on paper, but the benefit disappears as soon as the next direct debit leaves the account. Many pensions reflect working lives marked by interruptions: bringing up children, part-time work, caring for relatives and periods of unemployment. Women in particular feel the consequences in their purses every month. Anyone who has somehow managed all their life can suddenly discover in old age that “somehow” is no longer enough. Then, at 68 or 74, they find themselves wondering whether to buy another work jacket.

Between dignity and discount-store jobs: making work in retirement feel less harsh

Some pensioners approach the issue of continuing to work with surprising strategy. They sit down, calculate the sums carefully and speak to the pension service or a wage-tax advice association. It is not all sentimentality or “I just like helping out in the shop”. Those with some room for manoeuvre deliberately cut their hours, look for less physically demanding work or move their shifts to the early morning or evening so that they have the day free. Sometimes voluntary work at a local club turns into a small paid role. In other cases, longstanding expertise becomes consultancy work. “I have to” at least becomes a small measure of “I choose to”.

A common pattern is that many begin too quickly and with too much goodwill. They say, “Of course, I can do that,” and accept every shift, call and extra task. Eventually, the body applies the brakes: backs, knees and circulation all start to complain. Let us be honest: nobody enjoys leaving home at 4:30 am five times a week at the age of 70. Some say they initially feel ashamed to admit that they have to work again at all. There is a sense that they have “failed”, as though they personally made the wrong plans. In reality, they are usually only paying the price for decades of political and economic decisions.

In a café in a small town, a 69-year-old former nursery worker now looks after babies by the hour, paid by young parents. She says:

“I love children, that isn’t the problem. But I would have liked to decide for myself whether to do this – rather than doing it because heating becomes a luxury in winter otherwise.”

She has set out a few rules for herself:

• Never accept more than three fixed working days per week
• Prioritise jobs that suit existing knowledge and personal capacity
• Clarify in writing beforehand what will be paid and what remains a favour
• Speak openly with family about money, pressure and boundaries

In this way, a necessity gradually becomes a framework that still leaves room for personal choices.

When work in old age becomes a quiet public vote

The growing number of pensioners who continue working is not merely an economic statistic; it is something like a quiet vote with their feet. They signal that the story of a carefree retirement no longer matches many bank balances. Some see this development as a silent scandal, while others view it as the sober reality of an ageing society. Between those two positions are real people standing by the bakery shelf at six in the morning or making beds in a care home in the evening. What they are rarely told is this: they are supporting the system once again, despite having supported it throughout their lives.

Perhaps, in a few years, we will tell different stories about old age. Less about a “well-earned retirement” and more about negotiating together: how do we want to live when we are old? How much work is reasonable, how much financial security should we expect, and how much should we be willing to grant one another? When people see a pensioner smiling in a supermarket today, they often see only the surface: a bit of exercise, a conversation, a purpose. Beneath it lies the entirely practical question: is there enough money for a life that consists of more than simply getting by?

Perhaps change starts precisely when we stop looking away as a 74-year-old parcel delivery worker stands at the door, breathing heavily. Instead, we start a conversation, ask about his story and allow our own anger or helplessness. Then we ask ourselves how we want to think differently not only about our own old age, but also that of our parents and neighbours. Work in retirement is no longer an exception; it has become the norm. The question is: do we want it to remain that way, or will we eventually tell ourselves different figures, different stories and different visions of the future?

Key point	Detail	Benefit for the reader
A pension often no longer covers essential costs	Rising prices meet interrupted working lives and low pensions	Assess your own financial position in later life more realistically
Continuing to work can be shaped	Choose hours, tasks and conditions deliberately	Practical ways to turn necessity into greater self-determination
Open conversations ease the burden	Shame about money worries diminishes when family and wider support networks are involved	Make better use of emotional and practical support

FAQ:

• How many pensioners are currently still working? Depending on the region, roughly one in every six to seven pensioners continues to work in some form, and the trend is upward.
• Can pensioners earn an unlimited amount on top of their pension? Since the flexible pension scheme, the limits have been eased considerably, although it is still worth checking the current rules of the German Pension Insurance scheme.
• Is an advice appointment worthwhile before taking a side job? Yes. Even a one-hour meeting with the pension service or a wage-tax advice association can prevent financial surprises later on.
• Which jobs are generally more manageable for older people? Roles involving little heavy lifting, flexible hours and use of existing experience, such as care work, office work, consultancy and light service roles.
• How should I talk to my parents about returning to work? Without blame or pity: listen, ask what is weighing on them, and look together for alternatives or ways to ease the pressure.