84-year-old American woman forced to drive Uber to make a living regrets not saving for retirement when she was young

In order to survive, many elderly people cannot retire safely and are forced to continue working.

84 years old should be the age to enjoy retirement life, but an old woman in the United States still spends most of her time driving Uber every week just to pay her daily bills. She retired from hospital nursing in 2010. She originally thought she could live off her social security benefits, but found that her monthly income was far from enough to cover her living expenses. Finally, she reentered the workforce in 2016 and increased her income by driving Uber.

Foreign media reported that 84-year-old Sharon Albrecht said that driving Uber is the fastest way for her to earn extra income and pay her bills. She currently hopes to earn at least US$250 (approximately NT$7,906) per week.

In addition to transporting passengers, she also continues to engage in coaching and consulting work. She said passengers usually give her five-star reviews, and some praise her for being talkative. She even regards new car safety features such as reversing cameras as important aids when driving, and is proud to say that she has not received a speeding ticket in 3 years.

For her, driving is not just to pass the time, but a practical need in life. She admitted that without this extra income, the bills would not be paid smoothly.

Sharon said that she did not have any retirement savings, and she never seriously saved for retirement when she was working. She always felt that she was still young at the time and "there was no need to want to retire so early." In addition, she had a life attitude of living in the present when she was young, which ultimately forced her to continue working in her later years.

As the cost of living in the United States rises, more and more elderly people are beginning to supplement their retirement income through gig platforms such as Uber. However, employment experts point out that although such jobs have more flexible hours, they do not provide complete security as traditional salaried jobs, and gasoline, vehicle maintenance and other operating costs may further compress actual income.

Precisely because she has gone through this journey herself, Sharon’s advice to young people now is very direct: “As soon as you start working, you should plan for retirement.” She hopes that young people will not make the same mistake as she did, and don’t wait until they really need to retire, only to find that the social security funds and savings they have are not enough to support their lives.