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NSW Residents Believe Their Neighbourhoods Are Safer: ABS

In 2008, more than half (55%) of people in NSW did not think there were crime or public nuisance problems in their neighbourhood according to figures released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. This figure has risen from 47% to 55% between 1999 and 2008.

NSW Seniors Are Living Longer And Are Better Off

NSW seniors are living longer and are better off. The average life expectancy of people living in New South Wales has increased by nearly ten years from 1974 to 2006 according to a new report released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and the NSW Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care.

More Than A Third Of Brits (35 per cent) Are Likely to Consider Moving Abroad When They Retire

- Rising costs in Britain are also a factor for Brits considering moving abroad, as the new breed of retirees, dubbed 'emi-greys', worry that their pensions simply won't go far enough at home. Almost half of us (47 per cent) believe the UK is too expensive to live the life that we want to lead, and a worrying 28 per cent of people do not feel they can afford to stay in the UK when they retire.

The greyer, the better for rural towns Older residents seen as asset to smaller communities

A new study determined older Americans who retire to rural areas quickly become involved and are a tremendous asset to addressing both immediate and longer-term needs, such as public transportation and health care for older in-migrants.

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Retired?....New Grey Nomads Now Work Their Passage

By Jodie Thomson
The West Australian

In their late 50s, Wayne and Charan Cason are among a new breed of workers whose versatile skills and old-fashioned work ethic are in high demand from WA businesses seeking to capitalise on the growing army of grey nomads across Australia.

The seasoned travellers have set up camp at Wongoondy, in the northern Wheatbelt, as part of the casual workforce manning wheat bins across the State which will collect and store WA’s grain during the next two months of harvest.

They are among the tens of thousands of baby boomers who are semi-retiring and taking off around Australia in caravans, campers and motor homes, and they have had no shortage of work offers as they travel across the countryside.

Wayne ended his 30-year career with Telstra in 2000 and the couple sold their small farming property in northern Victoria to begin their journey around Australia.

He admits it was a big leap of faith. “We were bricks and mortar people,” he said. “I worked for Telstra for 30 years and I really enjoyed what I was doing. But we find plenty of odd jobs now.”

Those odd jobs have ranged from cleaning the Alice Springs court house to renovating caravans for the Shire of Sandstone, about 750km north-east of Perth. “There are just so many things to do out there and people are more than willing to give an older person a go,” Wayne said.

Charan, a bookkeeper, said there was work out there for “anybody who is our age, who has a little bit of nous and a little bit of know-how”. They travel in comfort in a converted 38ft (11.6m) coach, a 1984 model, which they spent two years rebuilding and refitting.

Their message to other prospective grey nomads is not to leave the run too late. “If people want to do it, they should do it as early as they can because fitness is a big thing,” she said. “Around 50 is about the right age.”

Bulk grain handler CBH is among a growing number of employers which have been advertising on online sites targeting grey nomads.

“They are excellent employees,” operations manager Michael Musgrave said. “They tend to care more about their work than some of the younger employees.”