By Betty Karnette
California Senate and Assembly— Retired
The next time you visit a small or large restaurant, stop at your local gas station or shop at Costco— look around. About how many people are spending money at these locations who are probably retired? I’d venture to say up to one third of the patrons will fit in this category. Their patronage keeps many smaller businesses as well as large establishments “in business.”
I realize that we who are retired are fortunate. But we want to help everyone else just like we did when we were employed as factory workers, clerical employees, teachers, police officers, firefighters, business people, spouses of hard working individuals, state and federal workers, service men and women, journalists, etc. etc. You can probably think of many more. I think, if we attempted to list them, we’d fill a small journal.
All of the retired people worked hard knowing that eventually they could retire and rest a bit. Some, of course, were forced to retire because the group for which they worked had that agreement while some were quite ready when the possibility of retiring presented itself. In any case, most paid into their retirement during their working career. It has been said by some, “Well, they could have done that by working independently!” Ask yourself, how many people are really able to do that— and if they were, would it be constant struggle? The point here is that workers know that Americans want good service to be rewarded. It is rare that a retiree’s pension can even compete with the wage earned before retirement, but it is usually a living wage for an older person. And that’s what Americans expect!
This living wage is very important to our economy— especially in California where many retirees have chosen to spend their later years. Even with senior discounts, the dollars spent amount to a great deal. Perhaps some “senior” economist/accountant/statistician can give us an estimate on that. I know that utilities, food, fuel, clothing, gardeners, housekeepers, caregivers, doctors, nurses, healthcare professionals, entertainment, travel, tourisms, sports, etc. keep our economy moving and viable. We need retirees because they are a very important cog in the economic wheel.
Here’s an assignment for you: Go around a block in your neighborhood or visit a retirement center or talk to condo owners and apartment residents. Try to get an idea of how many are retired. Then look at where they live and guess how much money is spent by each household. Then ask yourself (that is if you’re not retired) how the money they spend affects your job or business. Don’t forget that the insurance companies are employing large groups of people from premiums paid that relate to retired workers.
Yes, we need young, hard-working and middle-aged citizens contributing to the economy so that someday they’ll have the chance to retire and continue to be an important part of our society. We all must help each other. That’s what makes America great!
