While many have specialized skills that may not translate easily to other occupations, others may have no choice because of injury or layoff but to leave their jobs—and thus may not be able to keep working till they're financially ready to retire. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Workers in physically demanding jobs—physical workers—are at higher risk of being unable to work until they are financially ready to retire.

That grim piece of news shouldn't come as a surprise and is among the findings of a new study, The Unique Retirement Challenges of Workers in Physically Demanding Jobs, from the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies.

The study also finds that while physical workers in the U.S. are more likely to be planning for retirement than their counterparts elsewhere in the world, that doesn't mean that U.S. physical workers are really that much better off.

In fact, the survey finds that just 31 percent of physical workers in the U.S. and 21 percent globally feel they are on track to meet their retirement income needs.

And only 18 percent of physical workers, both here in the U.S. and abroad, are 55 or older—which raises the question of whether, as they're aging, they're “shifting into jobs that are less physically demanding, or leaving the workforce”—particularly since, as the study points out, the physically demanding nature of their work means that they “face the risk of aging out of their occupations before traditional retirement age.”

While many have specialized skills that may not translate easily to other occupations, others may have no choice because of injury or layoff but to leave their jobs—and thus may not be able to keep working till they're financially ready to retire.

And then there's the question of how automation, robotics and AI affect this group of workers—a result that's yet to be seen as one rises and the other seemingly diminishes.

Physical workers are more likely to be men—60 percent compared with 40 percent—and have a median age of 37, with 43 percent under the age of 35, with 65 percent reporting themselves to be in good or excellent health.

Among nonphysical workers, 67 percent characterize their health as good or excellent. And even as boomers cling to work to better prepare financially for retirement, only 5 percent of physical workers are 65 or older.

But while 64 percent say they're confident about retiring in a lifestyle they consider comfortable, they're not saving that way. Says the report, “Physical workers expect the largest proportion of their retirement income to come from government benefits (43 percent), followed by their own savings and investments (31 percent) and employer retirement benefits (26 percent).” In fact, it adds, habitual retirement saving “is not the 'norm'” among physical workers, with just 35 percent being habitual savers—compared with 40 percent of nonphysical workers (not that that's a huge improvement).

And just 33 percent of physical workers are on track to achieve about three quarters or more of their required retirement income, and 30 percent of respondents say they just don't know.

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