During the 1980s the news media were filled with reports of soaring unemployment as 'downsizing' and `restructuring' became the new buzzwords. Firms managed their workforce reduction by increasing the attractiveness of their pension plans-especially their early-retirement plans. In this volume, the authors examine the U.S. auto industry and present a full-scale analysis of the work and retirement decisions of its workers. They address organizational context and the logic of financial incentives in employer-provided early retirement plans. The impact of pension provisions, layoffs, plant closures, attitudes about `generational equity', and other factors influencing the workers' evaluation of the optimum time to end their careers in the auto industry are explored.

Internal Labor Markets, Plant Closings, and Retirement. Some Matters of Context. The Financial Structure of the Retirement Plans. Predicting Early Retirement. Discussing Options in an Endgame. Solidarity and `Generational Equity.' Satisfaction with Early Retirement. Inducing Early Retirement: Some Conclusions in Perspective. Index.