Two articles, one theme

#1: NYTimes

As numerous companies across the country withdraw retiree medical and dental
benefits while others switch to less generous retirement plans, many aging
workers who had expected to ease comfortably out of the labor force in their
50’s and early 60’s are discovering that they do not have the financial
resources to support themselves in retirement. As a result, a lot more of them
are returning to work…

Made to carry more of the burden of their retirement, many retirees say they
feel that a social compact between workers and employers – a set of expectations
established over the second half of the 20th century – is being dismantled.

#2: The McKinsey Quarterly

Belgians work shorter hours and retire earlier than do
most other Europeans, though the country’s high labor productivity gives them a
standard of living comparable to the EU average. But this sweet trade-off won’t
be feasible in the future, as Belgium confronts the same demographic pinch
squeezing the rest of Europe, where smaller working populations will struggle to
finance the retirement of an aging population.

Oh, boy. The discussion of "the age wave" is just beginning.