While the employment rate of pensioners has stayed steady, two in three are in part-time work, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

The data reveals the employment rate for men aged 65 and over was 10.7% in April-June 2008 and remained above 10% during the 2008-09
recession, and in September-November 2010 it reached 11.7%. The employment rate for women aged 60 and over was 13.5% in September-November 2010, compared with 12.3% in April-June 2008.

However, part-time work is more common at older than at younger ages. In April-June 2010, 59% of employed men aged 65 and older and 68 per
cent of employed women aged 60 and over worked part-time, while 12% of employed men aged 50 to 64 and 43% of employed women
aged 50 to 59 were in part-time jobs.

Sarah Levy, Head of ONS Pensions Analysis Unit said: “An alternative and more useful approach is to examine at which ages older people stop working.
This indicator of average age of withdrawal from the labour market will be important to watch in coming years as State Pension Age rises.”