Final results of the EX-Ls 2011 survey of all Lab retirees or surviving spouses/partners are now (finally) available. The results summarize what we learned about LBNL retiree activities, achievements, interests and concerns. As reported earlier, we received a total of 425 responses (~19% response rate). 180 respondents (42%) identified themselves as EX-Ls members, representing about 2/3 of the total EX-Ls membership at that time. We thank all who responded to the survey.
The Executive Summary (pages 3-6) presents the goals of the survey and a concise summary and highlight of the results. For example, the results suggest that most LBNL retirees are enjoying retirement; they were well prepared and enjoy reasonable health and financial security. Nearly 80% of the respondents still live in the East Bay or Greater Bay Area. About half of the respondents worked in a paid capacity after LBNL retirement, about half of those rehired at the Lab or UC. Whether paid or not, 44% of the responders were active professionally in the past three years. About 10% have volunteered at the Lab or at UC within the last 3 years while slightly more than half have volunteered in other organizations in their communities. Almost 75% of the respondents reported participating in a wide range of educational/self enhancement activities, many of them sponsored by the UC Berkeley Retirement Center (UCBRC).
The report also includes a description of the survey method, a complete tally of the responses to all questions, some of the wonderful comments we received, and an attached copy of the original SurveyMonkey survey.
Survey results help provide a broad and comprehensive picture of Lab retirees and will also help the EX-Ls and UCB Retirement Center ensure that programs meet the needs and interests of retirees. Survey results will also be shared (in aggregate) with LBNL management so they are aware of retirees’ continuing contributions to the Lab, University and their local communities. Although the Lab management was aware of and supported our efforts, the survey was not carried out on the Lab’s behalf. Nor did the Lab have input into the questions asked in the survey or in the subsequent analysis of the data.
The survey was prepared and analyzed by a committee comprised of Janis Dairiki (chair), Don Grether, Joe Jaklevic, Vicky Jared, and Rich Sextro. We had the assistance of Patrick Cullinane, the Executive Director, and Summer Scanlan, the Office Manager of the UCBRC, in both designing and implementing the survey; several student interns at UCBRC who assisted with the implementation of the survey questions in the web-based SurveyMonkey and in processing the results contained within the software; and Dick Baker who ably handled the final formatting and web posting.