ADJUSTMENT DIMENSION OF RETIRED TEACHERS IN ONUEKE EDUCATION ZONE OF EBONYI STATE

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Occupation has a serious influence on peoples’ sense, of identity. Withdrawing from it, makes a phenomenal development in his/her life. Alutu (1999) sees this development to become crucial because one’s dimensions of life is changed from what it is used to be in terms of dressing, oicial hour, interactions with colleagues in the oice and even attitude to the life of retired workers. Hornby (2000) describes retirement as the period of life aer one has stopped work at any particular age. It is the act of stopping a particular type of work, especially in sports or in polities due to age or years on the job. Olusakin (1999) equally defines retirement as a situation in which a person leaves a job he has been used to do in order to face another stage in his/her life whereby he now settles down to establish their own private job, which he/she does at one’s own convenience. Richardson and Atchley in Gillian (2004) define retirement as transitional stage of life that can be a pleasant experience and traumatic for others which depend on the way the person concerned, perceives it. Retirement can mean dierent things to dierent people in the society. Some feel that retirement is reducing the amount of work hours per week, from fulltime to part-time work and for others, it is working on a voluntary basis or ceasing from all work activities, paid or unpaid. Gillian (2004) defines retirement as the disengagement from business or public life, at which when one retires, the worker is no longer gainfully employed and begins to receive retirement benefits. Goold (2007) regards retirement as an important stage in human development which bring changes in life that requires adjustments in identify, thinking, feeling and actions. Asuquo (2007) sees retirement as a complex social phenomenon that signifies the detachment from customary activities in business, industry or active service as full-time employee.

Kaplan cited in Ukwuayi (2002) believes that retirement is the formal disengagement of a worker from a line of work in which he has made a career. Dada and Idowu (2003) define retirement as a transition from the world of work into a world of less rigorous work activity and rest especially in respect of retirement due to old age or long years of service. Marshall (2004) says some may see retirement as reducing the amount of work hours per week from full-time to part-time status, while others see it as working on a voluntary basis. Dchley 1988, Richardson (1999) describes traditional view of retirement to mean when one is no longer gainfully employed and receive benefits. But can engage in any other meaningful activities in order to earn his/her living in the society. Ukwuayi (2002) defines retirement as withdrawal from position or service, going away, retreating or removal from work. Abiola (2000) sees retirement as occupational death as opposed to biological death. Despite these subjective and objective definitions, views and opinions of retirement, one can agree that retirement requires reduction of activities prior to the later stages of life. In my own view and contribution, retirement is a process where by one retires from the activities of his/her youthful age to the adult age but still engage in other ventures in order to make end meet. The researcher says that any one who is interested in the issues surrounding labour management relations in Nigeria will believe with me that the real problems facing Nigeria teachers is that they are unmotivated and under appreciated because they are not being paid their retirements benefits due to them as at and when due and no teacher at both primary and secondary school levels are been given contract jobs to do such as engaging them to teach again as it happened in the case of the lecturers in the higher institutions aer their retirement, when the teacher in this category retires, so they are le like that to suer without anybody coming to their rescue or their aids.

The researcher also maintains that the reward system of teachers in Nigeria is very poor and not being paid the living wages, they are seen to be used as rag and discarded without effective retirement and social securities and salaries benefits which in this situations, one retired teacher died on the farm when working because he is working with an empty stomach and also the case of another retired teacher who died on his way to collect his benefits. With this ugly situation, the retired teachers find it difficult to plan for good adjustment in their retirement which can lead to psychological well-being of a retired teacher and also if taking care of, it will prolong their life span after retirement