But down the road, as those workers retire, obligations mount.

If the workers do not retire, they could face up to a 19 percent cut in their pensions.

But the program attracted only 1,495 workers, at least half of whom, officials later estimated, would have retired anyway.

At 4-5 o'clock most workers retired from the city centre.

Those 7,360 workers can now retire with full pensions at age 50.

Future American prosperity will be determined largely by how early or late workers retire.

Currently, a worker can retire after 25 years at age 55 with half pay.

In the others, workers either retired voluntarily or were laid off.

In Italy, workers with 35 years on the job can retire if they are at least 57.

So it is perhaps not surprising that until recently, workers were retiring sooner rather than later.