Divorce rates among older couples on the rise

IT’S meant to be the twilight of life but it seems retirement isn’t working out for a growing number of couples with experts reporting a spike in the “silver divorce”.

Experts are reporting a spike in the “silver divorce”.

IT’S meant to be the twilight of life but it seems retirement isn’t working out for a growing number of couples with experts reporting a spike in the “silver divorce”.

It comes as statistics from the Australian Bureau of Statistics reveals the numbers of people aged 60-64 who have divorced have almost doubled since 1981.

For men the numbers have jumped from 3.5 for every 1000 married persons to 6.5.

For women the same figure has jumped from 2.5 to 4.6.

Similar jumps were evident in the 55-59 age bracket.

Social commentator Mark McCrindle believes it’s because Australians are living longer and are less likely to remain in situations that make them unhappy.

The numbers of people aged 60-64 who have divorced have almost doubled since 1981.

“Australians are living longer and working later … in the past, people would’ve accepted a broken relationship and grinded on through,” he told The Daily Telegraph.

“But now, we aren’t prepared to put up with something that just isn’t right … people are more empowered … if people aren’t happy they will just make the break.”

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Mr McCrindle says these divorces overall have been made easier for couples with there no longer being a stigma attached to partners going their separate ways.

“People have changed their view of marriage. If it’s not working out or a couple have issues, there’s no social stigma to break it off,” he said.

While older couples are going their separate ways, divorce numbers have decreased among the younger generation.

With couples waiting until their late 20s and early 30s to get married, Mr McCrindle says Australians were thinking about marriage more seriously now than ever before.

“The younger generation is getting married approximately a decade later than couples in their 50s and 60s did … they are getting married later in life and may be more committed to it,” he said.

He believes these figures will lead to another decrease among older couples in generations to come.

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