How do older workers in the Fire and Rescue Service deal with work life balance issues as they plan for, approach, and transition through retirement?

How can older workers in the public sector maintain a satisfactory work life balance in the last ten or fifteen years of their career and into retirement? Organisational policies designed to support work life balance may help, but only if there is a corporate will to overcome prevailing internal culture, together with an understanding of the specific needs of older workers. Work life balance, which has gained importance over the past few decades, is defined here as the way in which individuals apportion time spent in their paid work with all of the other activities in their lives. Those approaching the end of their working lives come from a workaholic generation used to long hours as a way of showing loyalty to their employers, whereas their younger colleagues expect good work life balance as the norm. While the notion of work life balance for those who are no longer in paid work may seem strange, the way an individual plans for and controls the manner of their retirement may impact their well-being both before and after retirement. For many, retirement is no longer a single step from employment into non-employment; rather a phased reduction or sometimes ‘un-retirement’ and these changes may affect individual perceptions of their work life balance. This qualitative study, with uniformed and non-uniformed staff aged 45+ employed by a metropolitan Fire & Rescue Service, enabled participants to consider their work life balance issues; particularly whether there were any issues that were specific to that age cohort; and whether those issues might change as they moved towards and through retirement, although few had made detailed plans about their post-retirement lives. The effectiveness of organisational work life balance policies was found to be subject to the prevailing culture as well as pressures on the public sector to reduce staffing levels while maintaining front line services. The effects of the abolition of the Default Retirement Age and changes in the pension schemes have yet to be fully addressed by the organisation or individual employees.