Half of Americans age 50 to 70 want jobs that contribute to the greater good now and in retirement, according to the 2005 MetLife Foundation/Civic Ventures New Face of Work Survey.

In recent years, the vast majority of baby boomers have told pollsters that unlike their parents, they plan to work in retirement, they need continued income, and they want greater flexibility in retirement jobs. This survey of 1,000 Americans – conducted by Princeton Survey Research Associates International in spring 2005 – is the first to ask those in their 50s (baby boomers) and 60s (pre-boomers) what type of work they aspire to, what they want to accomplish through this work, and why they want to do it.

Survey results show that boomers and pre-boomers:

• Want to do work that helps others, now and in retirement.
• Want careers that are about people, purpose, and community.
• Have divergent attitudes about post-retirement work based on gender and race.
• Don't think it will be very easy to find second careers doing good work and strongly support public policy changes to remove obstacles.

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MetLife Foundation/Civic Ventures New Face of Work Survey

Full Report Download PDF File (68 pages, 1.1 MB) News Release View HTML page Executive Summary Download PDF File (4 pages, 72 KB) Essay by Marc Freedman Download PDF File (4 pages, 108 KB) Commentaries on the Survey By Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Phyllis Moen, David L. Simms, Robert Egger, David R. Jones, John S. Gomperts, and Peter Cappelli Download PDF File (16 pages, 120 KB) Survey Report Download PDF File (39 pages, 748 KB) Topline Results and Questionnaire Download PDF File (11 pages, 92 KB)