Should we mandate retirement at 70 to clear the path for younger workers?

As retirement ages trend later, younger workers worry about stalled career growth. This episode examines the tension between an aging workforce and the next generation, featuring a legal argument for mandatory retirement at 70 versus an economic case for working even longer.

Historically, mandatory retirement ages were legal, and the societal trend favored earlier exits from the workforce. Today, the landscape has shifted: people are living longer, Social Security and Medicare funding face instability, and many individuals choose to remain employed past traditional retirement age.

The debate centers on whether older workers staying in their roles hinders career advancement and financial planning for younger generations. The episode presents two opposing perspectives: a law professor advocating for a mandatory retirement age of 70, and an economist arguing that individuals should delay retirement even further.

Source: Older workers aren’t retiring. Should they be forced to? | Planet Money