Starting Retirement on a Sound Footing

You will no doubt have noticed that the car parks near the Main Building were particularly full last week. In fact it was almost impossible to find a parking spot. A prestigious speaker? A sensational lecture series? Nothing of the sort. It was all due to the pre-retirement seminar, the fifth of its kind since 1993, which never fails to be a success. 'We sent out a thousand invitations to CERN staff aged 55 and above and received 500 positive replies' says William Blair, who has been organising the seminars for the Human Resources (HR) Division for the last eight years in collaboration with the CERN Pensioners Association and the Staff Association. The Main Auditorium was not big enough to accommodate everyone and the discussions also had to be retransmitted live to the Council Chamber.

The success of the event is proof that retirement continues to be a matter of concern for the members of CERN. In fact, it was the realisation of this fact that prompted the programme's creation in 1993. 'The aim is not to deal the individual cases but to promote awareness about retirement and all the questions that may arise at this turning point in life' says William Blair.
Thus, around ten speakers from both inside and outside CERN dealt between them with all the issues that need to be kept in mind when planning retirement. The seminar began with a presentation on the psychological aspects of adjusting to retirement. The speaker was René Quenon, a specialist in such matters who has organised pre-retirement activities for several large companies and institutions in Switzerland. The subsequent talks over the four afternoon sessions were devoted to financial and health matters, health and old-age insurance in France and questions relating to rules and regulations and all the formalities to be completed. The various early retirement programmes were also covered, as well as the practical consequences of retirement, in particular the loss of international civil servant status and issues relating to residence permits. The talks generated numerous questions from the audience.
For those who would like to have a written record of the seminar or those who were unable to attend and prefer not to wait for the next one, which will be held in about 18 months' time, a summary record of the questions and answers will be available about three months from now, accompanied by copies of the transparencies shown by the speakers. The relevant CERN services can also answer any questions you may have.