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V O L . X X X N O. X V ยง 2 J U LY 8 , 2 0 2 4 16 Retired-ish Retired Mainers are reentering the workforce B y S l o a n e M . P e r r o n T he word "retirement" may conjure up images of tropi- cal relaxation, spending time with grandkids or perfecting one's golf game. But for many Mainers, that con- cept of retirement is a thing of the past. Like those across the U.S., some 20% of Maine retirees are re-entering the workforce. Whether for financial survival, or to regain a sense of purpose and routine, the number of Mainers "un-retiring" is growing. T h e c h a n g e i n w o r k p l a c e demographics particularly affects Maine since the state has the largest population per capita of people 65 years or older. Maine's 65 and older demographic makes up 22.5% of the state's total population, even exceeding Florida's, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Nancy Strojny, the SCORE Maine assistant district director, described the two main reasons why older profes- sionals opt back into the workforce. "I call it two parallel paths. One reason is rising prices, inflation, peo- ple who can't make ends meet," she says. "e other is people who don't have to work for whatever reason, but they need to keep themselves busy by doing something they are interested in, as opposed to letting their minds rot. So those are two different groups of people: people who have to work and people who want to work for the satisfaction of work." According to Strojny, there are many benefits to businesses hiring older employees. ey are more experi- enced, motivated and are typically loyal to the companies that they work for. "e benefits are older employees come from another generation, where generally they took work very seri- ously," she says. "So, what that trans- lates into for the employer, is older workers are generally more depend- able, more self-directed, and generally low-maintenance employees." Labor shortages In a labor market where many industries, such as health care, are facing staff short- ages, having another source of profes- sional workers is another added benefit.