Article Why should employers support the emotional side of retirement?

Many employers are already doing lots to support their people in preparing for retirement. They contribute to pension schemes. They provide tools and education on the pension system. Some even sponsor colleague sessions with financial advisers or retirement coaches.

And while all that matters for employees’ pension awareness, there’s still something missing.

As Christine Benz, Director of Personal Finance and Retirement Planning at Morningstar and author of ‘How to retire: 20 Lessons for a Happy, Successful, and Wealthy Retirement’¹, explained on our Money:Mindshift podcast, retirement planning isn’t just a maths problem. And yet, that’s often how we treat it, as a question of savings, tax wrappers and drawdown rates.

In reality, retirement’s more than a financial milestone. It’s a life change. It marks a transition not just of income, but also of identity, relationships, and purpose. Supporting your employees means helping them to prepare emotionally and psychologically for this next chapter.

Give people room to experiment

One of the most powerful tools employers can offer isn’t a seminar or a statement. It’s time.

Christine shared a personal story on our podcast. After experiencing many cold winters in Chicago, she and her husband began to wonder, ‘should we retire somewhere warmer?’. For them, Florida seemed like an obvious choice. They thought a holiday there might help confirm this feeling.

But instead of visiting for a quick getaway, they took a longer break, a sort of sabbatical. This gave them enough time to live life with a more normal rhythm like how they would in the future. They spent time doing the simple things like grocery shopping, checking in with family via FaceTime and getting a feel for the place.

And what did they realise? Florida was nice. But they missed being close to their friends and family. The break didn’t confirm their plan. It refined it.

This is retirement planning in action. It’s not only about spreadsheets and savings targets. But also, lived experience. Employers can help their people explore these decisions earlier by offering:

• Sabbaticals or extended breaks for employees approaching retirement age
• Remote working trials from different locations
• Job swaps or reduced hours as people consider their next phase

Giving people the opportunity to test retirement in real life can help them make better decisions. For them and for your workforce planning.

Enable phased retirement, not sudden exits

Another way employers can support this transition is through phased retirement. The option to gradually reduce hours or responsibilities before fully retiring.

This approach offers huge benefits:

• Employees can adjust emotionally and financially
• Teams retain experience and mentorship longer
• Knowledge transfer becomes smoother

Christine made the point that this kind of flexibility is often reserved for knowledge workers. This is employees in professional or senior roles with more autonomy. It’s far less common for people in skilled or manual jobs.

That’s a gap worth addressing. If retirement planning isn’t just a maths problem, then it shouldn’t just be a privilege for some.

Phased retirement needs to be accessible across your workforce, with creative thinking about how to adapt roles, not just exit plans.

Why this matters more than ever

People are living longer and retiring later. Supporting your people in this life stage isn’t just a nice-to-have. It’s part of the deal.

Traditional retirement support helps people understand what they have. But actionable support helps them understand what they want.

Again, a Christine explained, retirement planning goes beyond the math. It’s a design challenge. A question of how people want to live. And how you, as an employer, can help them get there.