Phased-retirement programs can take many forms. (See, for example, “New Ways to Phase into Retirement: Options for Faculty and Institutions” in the winter 2005 issue of the journal New Directions for Higher Education.) For the purposes of this survey, phased retirement was defined as “a formal program that permits tenured faculty members to phase into retirement by working fractional-time (for pro-rated pay) on the condition that they waive tenure at a specified time” (question 19 of the survey instrument). The survey data suggest that the number of phased-retirement programs in higher education has increased (see figure 10). (.pdf) Fifty-eight institutions reported that they implemented phased-retirement plans since 2000 (twenty institutions reported doing so in 2005 and 2006 alone). More institutions reported implementing phased-retirement programs since 2000 (n=58) than between 1994 and 1999 (n=51).
Still, only 32 percent of responding institutions reported that they currently had a phased-retirement program. Unlike retirement-incentive programs, phased-retirement programs are not typically “window” plans—that is, there usually is not a time limit on a plan’s availability. Ages fifty-five (42 percent) and sixty (27 percent) were the two most frequently cited minimum ages for eligibility. Forty-four percent of institutions reported ages sixty-three, sixty-four, or sixty-five as the maximum age at which faculty could continue to participate; 19 percent reported age seventy as the maximum.
Sixty-seven percent of responding institutions required faculty members to secure administrative approval to participate in a phased-retirement program. The institutions provided a range of benefits to faculty members who chose phased retirement, including full contributions to health-insurance premiums, extra retirement payments or credits, extra salary payments over and above a pro-rata amount, and the ability to draw on partial retirement benefits while earning salary during phased retirement. Figure 11 shows the percentage of institutions offering each benefit.
Forty-three percent of responding institutions required faculty members to relinquish tenure to participate in a phased-retirement program, and most of the institutions specified a maximum number of years that faculty member could participate. (Thirty-five percent of institutions reported a maximum of three years, and 38 percent reported a maximum of five years).
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(2/15/07)