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As boomers approach 62, the age when they become eligible for Social Security benefits, the trickle of news coverage has turned into a flood. Lately, our inbox has been overflowing with reports lamenting the fact that many people will have to work past 65, because they can’t afford to retire. Whoa! What’s with the hand-wringing?

Now we’re not knocking financial independence whether one arrives at that blessed state via saving, smart investing, solid income, inheritance or living within one’s means (perhaps the most overlooked option). The sooner the better, in our book. But we do take issue with this assumption that people work only because they have to, and that everyone is eager to retire, the earlier the better.

So, let us say this about that.

1. The assumption is false. According to surveys (AARP and others), 7 out of 10 workers plan to continue to work past so-called retirement age, and this is not entirely motivated by economics. If there is any problem here, it is that older workers who want to work are having more difficulty finding jobs commensurate with their skills. (Got your heart set on greeting customers at Walmart, go for it.) But what do older workers want? Oh, pretty much what most folks do: flexibility in their hours, autonomy, opportunities for training, balance. See:http://careersat50.monster.com/articles/olderworkerswant/

2. The notion that people hate their work just doesn’t hold water in a hard-working culture like ours. What does seem to be epidemic is complaining about work, and that might be a factor of how many more hours people are working, whether through necessity or choice. Working hard, i.e. being always available, is a status symbol. It says “I’m important”, perhaps even indispensable.

3. Being fired or downsized count among the most stressful of life events. This suggests that even work one ‘hates’ is work one would rather have.

4. Chances are, people who are that eager to quit working probably already have. Management expert, Peter Drucker, put it best: “There is an enormous number of managers who have retired on the job.” Now honestly. Would you want them on your payroll?

5. We may be in the minority, but the idea is gaining ground: Work is actually good for you! If you really do hate your job, start looking for something else, preferably while you’re still employed. A career change is a lot healthier than full retirement. But don’t just take our word for it. Here’s a study that appeared in the British Medical Journal:

Seems Malcolm Forbes had a point. “Retirement,” he famously said, “kills more people than hard work ever did.”