Push Retirement Age to 80? Come on, it would save money.

Ah, the corporate mind at work. Breathtaking in its utter stupidity, the CEO of AIG gives us a sneak peak into our corporate future:

ENews: American International Group Inc. (AIG) Chief Executive Officer Robert Benmosche said last weekend that Europe’s debt crisis shows governments worldwide must accept that people will have to work more years as life expectancies increase. “Retirement ages will have to move to 70, 80 years old,” Benmosche, who turned 68 last week, said. “That would make pensions, medical services more affordable. They will keep people working longer and will take that burden off of the youth.”

“Mr. Benmosche’s statement is disgraceful,” said Barbara Easterling, President of the Alliance for Retired Americans. “Most 80-year-olds have health issues that would make attempting to work extremely stressful on their bodies and even dangerous. Forty-five percent of workers in the 62-69 year age range work in physically demanding or difficult jobs.” A new study (http://bit.ly/Lc8goJ) from the Economic Policy Institute finds that hardships for older workers due to proposed Social Security cuts would be significant—and that the “just work longer to make up the difference” argument doesn’t hold up. Health problems, caregiving responsibilities, lack of suitable work and unemployment all play a role in making it difficult or impossible for many entering their would-be golden years to keep working. In another related study, the American Institute for Economic Research (AIER) has found additional evidence that people whose jobs require more physical activity and manual labor tend to retire earlier.