Many Older Workers Say COVID-19 Changed This Decision Due to the pandemic, workers are reconsidering a key retirement step. COVID-19 changed just about everything in America — include the way we plan to retire. Instead of taking Social Security later in life, 3.1 million Americans aged 55 or older now say they will apply for benefits sooner than they planned to before the pandemic, according to U.S. Census Bureau findings. On the other hand, 1.4 million people in that age group now plan to work longer than they previously expected to, thanks to the pandemic. Do the math, and the result is a net of about 1.7 million extra early retirements, which could be a boon for younger workers hoping to move up into higher-ranking jobs.