Retirement Isn’t What It Used to Be

What Canadian Organizations Need to Know Right Now

For decades, retirement followed a familiar script: work hard, hit a milestone age, clean out your desk, and never look back. That script is being rewritten, and organizations that aren't paying attention are being caught off guard.

We are in the middle of one of the most significant workforce shifts in our country's history, and how employers respond over the next few years will define their ability to attract and retain talent for a generation.

The "Peak Retirement Wave" Is Here

The numbers are striking. All Baby Boomers (born between 1946 and 1965) will be 65 years of age or older by 2030, and Canada is facing what RBC Economics has called the "largest retirement wave yet." According to RBC's 2025 analysis, an estimated 5.2 million Boomers have already left Canada's labour force over the past decade. With the remaining cohort reaching age 65 over the next five years, RBC projects a further two-percentage-point decline in labour force participation before 2030, a steeper drop than the prior fourteen years combined.

This isn't a distant forecast; it's happening right now. The implications are real: talent shortages, the loss of institutional knowledge, and mounting pressure to retain experienced workers longer.

Retirement Is Evolving

Here's where it gets more nuanced and more interesting. While the wave of retirement is real, so is a powerful counter-current: a growing number of Canadians are choosing not to retire, at least not in the traditional sense.

In 2023, a record 15% of Canadians aged 65 and older were still participating in the labour market and the average retirement age has risen from 60.9 years in 1998 to 65.1 years in 2023. [https://vanierinstitute.ca/families-count-2024/more-older-adults-are-working-for-pay-and-retiring-later/]

The reasons are layered. Financial pressures are real and significant. There are those who don’t have sufficient savings and who must keep working to support themselves financially. And then there are those who continue working because it provides identity, social connection, and mental engagement they don’t want to give up. Many retirees choose to continue working part-time because work still means something to them.

This is reshaping what retirement looks like for many. Rather than a hard stop, many Canadians are choosing a more gradual, phased transition, reducing hours incrementally, moving to part-time or contract work, or taking on advisory and mentorship roles. Others are building what some call a "portfolio retirement": a blend of paid part-time work, volunteering, caregiving, and personal pursuits. Retirement is evolving from a destination into a new chapter with its own purpose and momentum.

What This Means for Canadian Organizations

The opportunity cuts both ways. Organizations that invest in thoughtful approaches to late-career transitions will retain critical knowledge, support their people through this meaningful life change, and build cultures that span generations.

Here's where to focus:

Phased retirement programs. Rather than treating retirement as a cliff, forward-thinking employers are treating it as a gentle slope. Formal phased retirement programs (reduced schedules, gradual role transitions, flexible arrangements) allow experienced workers to stay engaged on their own terms. 2023 Statistics Canada data makes the business case clear: over 55% of Canadians planning to retire say they would continue working longer if they could go part-time, and nearly half say they'd stay if they could reduce hours without affecting their pension. These workers want to keep contributing. Organizations need to create conditions that make it possible.

Alumni talent pools. Former employees don't have to disappear. Building structured networks that tap retirees for project work, knowledge transfer, and mentorship keeps valuable institutional expertise without requiring full-time commitment. This is especially critical in sectors already experiencing talent gaps.

Retirement readiness support beyond the RRSP. This is where a lot of Canadian organizations are leaving real value on the table. Traditionally, retirement support has meant a group benefits plan and maybe a financial planning session. But Canadians need help preparing for all dimensions of retirement, not just the financial ones. What will I do with my time? Who am I outside of my job title? What does purpose look like in this next chapter? These are profound questions that many employees have never been given the space to explore.

Finances are only part of the picture. The identity shift, change in social structure, and need for purpose are dimensions that matter enormously, and they are almost entirely absent from conventional employer-supported retirement planning.

Retirement Readiness That Goes the Distance

At Cenera, we've built our New Horizons™ Retirement Planning program specifically to address this gap. We believe that retirement planning is too often treated as a purely individual responsibility. The benefits of doing it well extend far beyond the retiree; organizations that support their employees through this transition see smoother knowledge transfer, better succession planning, and deeper loyalty from their people as they prepare for what comes next.

New Horizons™ guides participants through seven key areas of focus, helping them design a proactive, intentional plan for their mature years. It goes well beyond financial preparedness to address the identity shifts, relationship changes, lifestyle design, health and wellness planning, and sense of purpose that determine whether someone truly thrives in retirement or ends up struggling. When organizations invest in programs like New Horizons, they signal something important: we see you as a whole person, not just a role to be backfilled. That message matters.

The Bottom Line

Is retirement still a given? For some Canadians, yes. But for a growing number, it's a concept that needs reimagining. And, for organizations, it represents an urgent call to action.

We are in a pivotal moment. The talent and knowledge walking out the door over the next several years cannot be fully replaced by recruitment alone. The organizations that will come out ahead are those that recognize people approaching retirement as strategic assets, create conditions that honour their expertise, and invest in preparing them for what comes next.

If you'd like to learn more about Cenera's New Horizons™ Retirement Planning program or how we can support your organization through workforce transitions, reach out to our team. We're here to help you navigate what's next.