Senior News Line: Going back to work?

A small recent survey revealed that 51% of the retired senior respondents are considering going back to work, also known as “unretiring.”

The reason, of course, won’t be a great surprise: They need to go back to work because the cost of everything is going up. The amount of money they’re trying to earn is $500 per month on average.

To be considered before you rush into unretirement:

• If you’re collecting Social Security and are under full retirement age, your benefit amount might be reduced while you’re earning that extra income. After you reach full retirement age, you’ll be able to work and not have your benefit amount reduced.

• Your full retirement age depends on your month and year of birth. See the charts on the Social Security website at www.ssa.gov to determine your full retirement age.

• If you’ve been retired, consider if you’re ready to make that adjustment to your life that returning to work would bring. It might make the difference between seeking a part-time job as opposed to working full time.

• If you plan on going back to work and need to provide a résumé, don’t use a résumé you created years ago. Have a résumé service do it for you, if possible.

• If you do it yourself, don’t list everything you’ve ever done. Go back a maximum of 15 years and don’t detail your work history with every date. Instead, go for broad categories such as your experience, qualifications, skills and accomplishments in previous jobs. If you’re especially skilled with technology, be sure to say so. Leave out the dates of any degrees and awards.

For ideas and hints, search online for “résumés for seniors going back to work” or “résumés for retirees.”

Look at the National Council on Aging at www.ncoa.org for their résumé-writing guide and AARP at aarp.org for information on writing a résumé after the age of 50.