A recent study in the UK has found that 30 percent of employees over age 60 would happily work into their 70s, compared to only 17 percent of employees in their 30s.

Research by the Employers Forum on Age shows that the age 60+ employees are happiest at work while the age 30 workforce feels under the most pressure. Only half of workers in their 30s were pleased with their work-life balance and many tended to make career changes because they were denied interesting and challenging jobs.

Of the 1,600 workers aged 16 to 69 who were surveyed, 40 percent said the concept of a fixed retirement age didn't make sense. As of October 2006, it will be illegal to discriminate on the basis of age in the European Union. In the UK, companies will no longer be able to set compulsory retirement ages under 65, except for jobs with specific requirements, such as those involving heavy manual labour.