Retirement Cliff: A Helpful Solution

Retirement Cliff: A Helpful Solution

The “retirement cliff” refers to the large number of ASRS employees who are approaching retirement age. Arizona’s state, municipal and education employers are at risk of losing a wide range knowledge and skills as their most experienced employees step out of the workforce.

One way ASRS K-12 employers have been softening the landing from the “retirement cliff” is by partnering with ESI to take advantage of their return-to-work program. Since 1999, over 13,000 K-12 employees have participated, keeping many hard-to-fill education positions filled. While a few government employers have utilized the program, ESI is working hard to spread the word about this powerful way to retain experienced employees.

ESI’s return-to-work program allows employees to retire from the ASRS and return-to-work, continuing in their same position without any restrictions, while collecting their ASRS pension and a salary from ESI.

It is a win-win for employers and employees. ESI can help employers retain their most experienced employees at low-cost. Retirees can begin to collect their pension while continuing to do the work they love. Together, this eases the retirement cliff risk while stretching staffing budgets much further making the entire program taxpayer-efficient.

People are also often surprised to learn ESI continues to be an Arizona family business since its founding 25 years ago. While we use the best in sophisticated communication, recruiting, and performance improvement techniques, we remain equally committed to a personal touch. While a text or email works, we are one of the few companies left who welcomes phone calls. This thoughtfulness is the bedrock of ESI culture.

With this in mind, please contact us. We’d be delighted to share the details of how this program can help you and your organization.