Do the Math

One-tenth of one percent can make a difference. Workers in the Federal Employees Retirement System have a monetary incentive to stay on the job until at least age 62.

Say you're 61 years old with 25 years of service, and you've made $70,000 a year the past three years.

The standard pension formula is 1 percent times the average of your three years of highest salary multiplied by years of service. Here's how your annual pension would work out.

.01 X 70,000 = 700 X 25 = $17,500

At 62 years old the pension formula grows to 1.1 percent times your high-three.

.011 X 70,000 = 770 X 25 = $19,250

Over 15 years of retirement, that's a $26,250 difference. Human resources specialists report that the difference is influencing employees to put off retirement.