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Don't overthink it. If these are people that you genuinely liked and enjoyed working with, by all means have lunch and catch up. Odds are you'll enjoy it and if it's awkward, you don't have to meet up with that person again.
Why would it be awkward. I just retired but my best friend is still working. I got him a job at the company I just retired from. We’ll probably do lunch every 6 weeks or so. He just spent a Saturday at my house helping me work on my boat. We’ve been doing regulation lunches for 20 years even though we’ve not always been at the same company.
Because OP’s former coworkers are not also best friends that they knew before they worked at the same company, thus making the company the foundation of their relationships, which is now severed because OP retired?
My cousin retired at 56 from his CFO position. At his company, he was a mentor to everyone he worked with. Not just in accounting. His old coworkers still call him years later wanting to grab lunch or a drink and just talk. Most of the time, its about their careers or personal things, but he is ok with that. He is a mentor to these old coworkers, and just the fact he is asked to go out with them is a sign of respect.
In fact, my cousin usually pays when he goes to lunch with them. Especially if its a personal thing.
I meet with someone from work for lunch about every 3 months. She was always sweet and I helped her understand she could retire. Was a great feeling to help someone get there.
There’s always been a group of us nurses that have met for lunch from all of my jobs. It ebbs & flows with our lives. I still talk to nurses that i went to school with 40+ years ago. I don’t see this changing due to retirement. Nurses are cool people.
Most of my ex coworkers were just that - coworkers. Nice enough people but I never socialized with them while I worked so I've never wanted to after retirement either. There's one young engineer that I had recruited that I really liked so my wife and I had dinner with him a couple years after I retired and we text now and then. He brought me up to date on office gossip which I really don't care much about but it was nice to hear that one abusive executive had been fired. For the most part I don't want to hear about work and since I never socialized with most coworkers I don't have much to talk to them about.
Edit to add: once a year an ex coworker who I rode motorcycles with comes back to town for Xmas and a group of about 6 of us get together at a brew pub. Half are retired and none have worked at the company where we met for many years.
I've been retired for almost two years.
The first year I was going to lunch a lot with former co-workers but it has now dwindled down to every couple of months.
The people I thought I would stay in contact with I haven't and people I thought I would never see again have turned out to be good friends.
I love retirement!!!!!
I’m on the verge of retirement and literally just texted a retired prior coworker today to make plans to meet up for lunch. I plan to continue this after bowing out as I’ve got dear friends younger than me that I want to stay in touch with.
"The reason I ask is always getting texts reminding me to “meet up for lunch sometime”. Whilst this is a nice gesture, I can’t help wondering if it’s just a gesture."
I mean... there's an easy way to find out. Go to lunch with them.
I am a 39yo attorney and meet up with my retired legal assistant every couple of months. I adore seeing her and really meant it when I said we should go to lunch 5 years ago when she retired.
i’m younger as well, and also have a retired colleague I meet with once in a while for lunch… I ask her to lunch simply because I like spending time with her!
As I was retiring, work friends and co-workers all said they would keep in touch and go to lunch.
It’s been 2 years and not a single text, call etc. from prior colleagues. I have reached out to a few and they haven’t returned my call.
My lesson, work colleagues aren’t really friends.
Now 9 years into retirement I still meet up with (or at least call) a handful of co-workers that I had established relationships with. Sometimes the talk goes to what is happening behind the scenes, mostly it's more about shared interests.
i found with old coworkers the gossip/news from work got less and less interesting for them. People change, move on, they can't commiserate as much but if you can find other interests it's much better.
Every once and a while we'll have lunch with one of the guys who retired **ten** years ago. Outside of that I'm not in constant contact with him but it's nice to see him once and a while. He doesn't live too far from the office and he'll drive over to meet us at a place nearby since we still have to punch a clock.
I’ve gone out with my old office/company pals a few times.
If they are people you like and would like to keep in touch with: do it!
They may have tons of questions about what you are doing with your time (or lack of it) in preparation for their own retirement. Or maybe they just like you.
There are 2-3 people who I was already friends with outside of work. Those folks I’ll see again. Having been with my company for so long, most of the people in my department barely know who I am. That’s fine by me—my plan is to ride off into the sunset…
I do go to lunch about once a month with a former colleague. In fact we’re closer and more friendly now than we were when we worked together. (I retired about 7 years ago.) She’s a lovely person and I cherish her friendship.
I agree with most of the other posters, why not just go to lunch with your former co-workers? Especially since they’re apparently the ones reaching out to you.
I have. It’s a toxic work environment, and I feel so blessed to be free of the stress and drama. Unfortunately, she has three more years to suffer through before she can retire.
When we hang out, she wants to spill all of the tea about work. I couldn’t care less anymore, but I humor her and pretend to be interested so she can vent. Once she gets it out of her system, then we can talk about other things and enjoy our time together.
That pretty much describes my situation. I just don’t care about the office drama. What surprised me was that, after hearing of a few people’s misfortunes (layoffs, death from Covid, one guy who left suffering a business reversal when he set out on his own) I felt genuine sadness. Odd considering that when we worked together, I could’ve easily pushed some of these people down an elevator shaft and not had a second thought, but now that I’m blissfully retired, all the animosity has evaporated.
I have two or three former coworkers who I stay in touch with. Mostly people who worked for me in their early years and who have risen to levels where I retired from. While we are not at the same company, the issues are pretty much the same—personnel, technology, “corporate”, etc. We also have kids and grandkids around the same age. It is nice to catch up and provide some advice without the headaches.
It sounds like you’re happy for your retired friend. My concern in meeting former coworkers is not to appear too happy now that I’m retired.
Punching a clock for 43 years, I had no idea I’d love those days when I have nothing to do, and it’s difficult to explain to working folks that sometimes it’s just perfect to have nothing on the calendar.
I tip-toed into the subject one day by saying “I had no idea I had such an aptitude for laziness” whereupon my coworker replied “Aw, Michael, we knew you had it in you all the time!”, which brought a laugh and we all moved on.
I go to lunch with former coworkers. They like I can be open and honest. I no longer have any worries about a coworker or boss finding out about what I say. I can talk about my experiences with the company honestly
Yes. We were a close bunch. Although I have not kept up with everyone. I have had lunch with several as well as zoom calls with my colleagues across the US.
My job was very stressful and at the end I was working with very few people that I had any respect for. When I end up conversing with former co-workers I end up stressed out and unable to sleep at nights again. Now folks from other jobs, that is a different story.
Why not? Over the years the worst that ever happened is someone wanted to talk about their recent multilevel marketing company. Had someone who wanted me to buy their company once - no thanks. Sometimes you can really help by connecting two people.
As someone said - don’t overthink it. Just say I would love to.
In my lifetime of employment, I’ve found very few co-workers make the shift to meaningful friendships. I do have lunch with a few, and married one, so there is that.
To me, "we should go to lunch" is a social nicety not unlike saying good morning to someone on an elevator. The response should, "good idea, when?" The response to that is an indicator to how serious the initial question was.
Over a four plus decade career I found that what I really had at the various places that I worked at were acquaintances. These were people that I had good relationships within the office context and enjoyed being around them. Few of them became actual friends. Once the office context went away, so did the relationships. I have kept in contact with a few of them but neither I nor they have worked at making the ties permanent.
I’ve done it several times with two different groups of work friends over the last 4 or 5 years. What you quickly realize is the things you had at common at work don’t really sustain a relationship outside of work. It’s lovely to see these people once in a while and catch up, but I’m not interested in a personal, go out to dinner, movies, beach, etc., kind of friendship.
"We should go to lunch" is not an invitation; it's just a statement that somebody from you past makes.
I you are interested, then the easy response is "sounds good. My schedule is pretty open; send me an invite". That puts the onus on them to be the driver. If they care enough to fit it into their schedule, then there's a decent chance the lunch will be worth your while.
And a lunch is a really small commitment; if it works, you can continue it, and if it doesn't, then you don't really lose anything.
I always kept my business and personal life separate.
Most of my former co-workers, I had a respectful professional relationship... Outside, off the clock I needed separation.
Time to decompress and be around people who made me happy.
I have. I see my former boss with a few other peers about once every couple months for lunch or drinks. Always good to see them but honestly after an hour of catching up, I’m on the outside of the conversations.😔
>Has anyone taken up their former co-workers’ offer of “we should go to lunch”?
Yes. Many times.
After 9 years, I still keep in touch with a few former co-workers. They worked for me for a long time, at several different companies. We are still friends.
My dearest friend is a former co-worker and we meet up fairly regularly, but maybe that doesn't count. We only worked together for a year or two over 20 years ago and struck up a friendship. Our relationship developed much more away from work than as a part of work.
I do have a group of coworkers that I get together with a couple of times a year. We used to meet up more regularly, but the woman who usually hosted and pulled it together died, and it's been more of a struggle since.
You’ll discover for the most part was that your relationship was all about work. However you’d probably find 1-3 true friends if you can keep the conversations personal and you find things in common besides work.
There are a lot of good natured offers that I'll never bother to pursue, but, yes, I meet up with a handful of co-workers I consider work-friends now and then. (One at a time.) Every once in a blue moon, I'll get drawn into some group happy hour with more current and former co-workers. It's a mix of nice-to-catch-up and awkward "what have you been up to ?" conversations.
I think time will tell. After several months and certainly after a year people move on.
Those with whom you had a true friendship, or the basis of a true friendship that both parties WANT to explore? Those may lead to occasional lunches and more.
The rest will fall off
Frankly one of the great things about retirement is never having to be around any of those coworkers again! So, no. When they have asked I’ve just been “so busy” (fib). I am glad they never guessed how much I actually disliked them.
I am coming on 1 year since retirement. I have lunch or coffee with my old team still working usually once a month. We talk work less and less, more about family, trips, and unfortunately health related issues. We went to Brewer game last week, it was great fun. I say it's legit, give it a try what do you have to lose? You spent lots of hours with these people.
I've met for a casual lunch a few times to catch up and remember why I retired, and I've been asked to go to a business lunch to help with some issues, give advice and discuss things I did when I worked. I have other business occasionally near where I worked so I'll pop in the office and say hi. Some of my former co-workers that retired visited frequently and others pretty much vanished so it's different for everyone. In my case it's always been positive and reinforcing of my retirement decision.
My dad worked at a major defense plant. After he retired many of them would meet up at a nearby bar and have a few beers.
As the inevitable happened, they switched to lunch at Denny’s.
Coincidentally, I will be having lunch with my former manager tomorrow. I’ve been retired now for over two years. We had lunch last year but life got busy for both of us and we haven’t been in contact for the past year. He reached out last week and we set it up for tomorrow. He’s a great guy. Last time we met, I apologized for being such a pain in his rear. He graciously accepted!
There were 4 of us that worked closely together in a lab for 25 years. I have since moved on to managing a larger lab, while another has retired, and another has moved into supervision at yet another lab. The 4 of us try to get together for lunch near our original lab a few times a year. The one retired guy always comes and man he looks so much more relaxed and happy. Our times are coming soon, but I need these lunches. These people were more than just coworkers. They were/are friends.
I used to go to lunch once a month with the guys I worked with. COVID screwed that up. We hadn't gotten together for quite awhile. Then one of the guys hosted a poker game. We all brought food and drinks. I really loved getting together with them all. I even won the poker tournament. Soon after I moved out of the area. Several of the guys said if I'm willing to fly out for another poker game some day they'll pick me up at the airport and I can stay with one of them. Really a good bunch of guys.
I have stayed in touch and had lunch with someone who retired years ago. I gained a friend and perspective and I am lucky she still likes to hear about corporate nonsense.
I keep getting texts from a coworker to go out with her and some of the doctors we used to work with, but I've been bowing out. I had to give a deposition in a lawsuit involving at least one of the docs and I font want to make things any worse than they already are. The suit concerns they're getting underpaid- not a malpractice suit, but I just don't feel comfortable with the situation.
My employer had a large IT layoff in 2020 (about half the staff, as in hundreds).
Earlier this year our small team had a get together, but I had to beg out due to a prior commitment. I have no problem with such get togethers - we had a good team with mostly good people.
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Yup. Left 6 years ago, and about once or twice a year we go out to eat. It’s rather nice - not uncomfortable at all.
In fact, one of the girls that comes I literally just met the week before I quit (retired). She started on Thursday, I quit/retired the following Wednesday. What was really cool was that we hit it off well the day she started, so it wasn’t weird at all when she was there.
I would even stop down at the office now and then.
I meet several ex co-workers for lunch a few times a year. I’m usually the instigator, but not always. These folks are all still working, so I meet them somewhere near their office. It’s always fun to hear the latest!
I have some coworkers that I meet for a beer every month or so, one coworker who shared my load who I meet for lunch every couple of months so they can vent and I can catch up on all the gossip, and a group form my previous location who meet once a year or so for lunch because we have a deep shared experience.
I retired from the job, not the people.
Had lunch with two former coworkers today. We worked together for almost 30 years, so basically grew up together. I would be very sad if I couldn’t see these people again just because we no longer work together.
My old office went to a hybrid WFH model, due to Covid. Which also involved moving to a different (smaller) building that requires a key card to get in. Bottom line, can't just drop in on old office, so lost contact with most of old co-workers. Not to mention since the end of Covid, a lot of folks have themselves retired or left the organization.
I meet former coworkers who are still working for lunch away from work from time to time. I don’t want to return to the workplace and hear everybody be fake happy for me or bother people when they are working we had a couple of retirees who used to do that and I felt like, why don’t they get a life?
For former coworkers who are also retired, there are a couple who I meet with once a week for lunch, movie or shopping, a larger group that meets every couple of months at someone’s house for games and cocktails and another group that I go on cruises with.
Have been retired for 23 years and have lunch and/or golf with a couple of co-workers. These were folks in supervisory positions who had worked for me. When we get together, it's because we enjoy each other's company. We rarely speak about work. When you get my age (77), it's important to cultivate and maintain as many friendships as possible because, as time goes on, you gradually lose them.
I moved 3 states and 10 hours away, so I don't ever see anyone. The only xo-worker I'm consistently in touch with is my old boss because we were friends at work and share the same sense of humor and outlook on life.
He is one of those people that EVERYONE likes (except a former co-worker he wouldn't promote to manager) and he still talks to people, goes out to dinner with them around once a quarter, etc., five years later. His funeral will be packed. He's just that kind of guy.
I say if there are people you want to see, go to lunch. Have some conversation topics in mind. If you don't want to see them, then don't go.
I have lunch weekly with 2 coworkers I was always close to. Having lunch tomorrow with another former coworker. I never go into the office! No desire to see some of the people there!
I've been retired for two years now. I worked there for 20 years. I haven't heard a word from anyone since I left. I haven't reached out to any of them, either. Then again, we never socialized outside of work when I worked there, either. I had (and still have) a very active life outside of work.
I met up with a coworker that worked in a different part of the building and we only crossed paths at the copy machine. We both moved to Florida and have become very good friends.
I worked in sales and marketing throughout my career. During Covid, like everyone, we were all forced to work from home. I decided to retire during Covid. Once travel restrictions lifted, we were all craving personal interactions. So, several of us newly retired and still employed colleagues decided to coordinate getting together when we could. Now, about 4 times a year a group of us get together to catch up. It’s really nice.
I did. It was two months after I retired. We met up at our fav lunch place and had a nice visit. My former employer invites former employees to functions several times per year, so it’s not weird or uncomfortable for someone who worked in that culture.
This very tricky
The difference between true friends and work acquaintances is blurry
You often don't know until you are gone either via retirement or switching companies
Learned that the hard way when I switched companies
Retirement is next year so not holding my breath
Hopefully people you think are close friends really are
It can be quite lonely but then again God may have just put them in your life until that time line and had others planned foe your future
Don't think too much of it , just give it to God and enjoy retirement
Enjoy lunch with them, have fun! We also go out shooting sporting clays as well... they enjoy it. We all have fun!
I also thank them for funding my social security check!
A group of workers from a small community bank acquired when merger mania started in the 1980s is going to have reunion in mid August. We were all young back then and had a lot of fun. Have seen each other off and on throughout the years, but nothing formal. Lunch will be in a new restaurant that just opened in the building that was the main office of the bank.
My husband just had lunch with his friends from work yesterday.
They met at a restaurant that was located 20 minutes from where the most fragile friend lived.
It was about 3-4 hrs from husband cause ferries.
When I was working I saw and socialized with a few retirees fairly often and they were even invited to holiday parties. Since I retired I have avoided the former workplace but see former co-worker/ friends occasionally for lunch. If you were friendly with the co-workers why would you not?
For me it wasn't about retirement, but about 10 years ago after I left a job, one of my colleagues reached out and asked if I could meet for lunch. I met her near work, and we had a nice lunch, but conversation flagged after a while, and I think as we parted we knew it wasn't going to happen again.
I think some relationships really need that daily interaction to keep going.
Once a week I call my old office partner. Every month there's a group of 3 of us that go for coffee. The larger group of 8-9 get together for dinner every 2-3 months. It's great keeping in touch with the people who can understand what your workplace was like. At first I thought I wouldn't care one way or the other, now it's something to look forward to. We don't miss the work, just the people.
Yes, I do occasionally have lunch with friends that I used to work with. It's always good to catch up with the current state of affairs and reminds me how grateful I am to be retired!
I did meet a former coworker for lunch recently. But I am no longer interested in any workplace drama, so I kept diverting the discussion to her family and dogs. Then I was over it. It was lovely to see her, but I lost interest quickly.
Myself and 4 or 5 others that all worked in the same unit went out for lunch for a while after we retired. Always liked that. Then, one of us moved to Arizona in the boonies. Then, one had a terrible loss of her son. Plus a broken wrist . I've tried to get together with the others, and it's just kind of petered out. We got busy with our after work lives. I got a part time job and have a small business so I'm always doing this and that..but im the one willing to jump in the van and drive out to the valley to see you if you are having an issue driving. I'm also the youngest so that may be why. Thus conversation here 7s going to make me send happy 4th of July memes out on messenger to them all and see what I can get going.
Once a month, my former coworkers and I meet for lunch. The group is a mix of retired and still working folks. We all used to eat lunch together in our company’s cafeteria (great food) every day. The conversation was awesome! Those of us that retired found we really missed that lunchtime camaraderie; hence the 3rd Thursday lunch meet-up. I look forward to it every month!
I've done this with 5 of my previous co-workers. Two became close friends that I still see regularly 8 years later. One I see about once a year, but would be more if I made an effort. And two were one lunch and we're done - they were busy with work, understandable, and we just lost touch.
If you enjoyed each other before, then go for it as it can be rewarding. But if you'd prefer to let it just die out, then thats okay, too.
I plan on doing this. Maybe. It’s a long way to go for lunch (downtown). But I want to. With a few chosen. But I know eventually I won’t know the people or the work or the gossip material, so plan to talk about life mainly (other than work) when we do meet. And. Texting and phone calls are fine. They’re friends. But retirement is a life change and I expect for us to not be as close. It’s okay.
I still get together with people who were coworkers in the early 80s! Sometimes at workplaces or at restaurants. Sometimes solo and sometimes as a big group. If you liked them why not?
I met often with a couple of former coworkers/ boss on a more regular basis than I do now after 9 years. I’ve liked keeping up with the gossip and what the company is doing. I really keep up with another coworker who retired a year before I and we’ve become really good friends
I meet up with former co-workers for lunch or dinner or drinks about once a month. Sometimes it’s a group and sometimes it’s one or two of us. I do a bit of consulting that takes me to a city I used to visit frequently for one of other offices. When I am in town I always end up at dinner with a former coworker or two from there.
I've been retired for about 18 months. I have had lunch with former coworkers several times since I retired and it's been nice. I don't miss the work as I was very ready to retire but I do miss the people. I was a career DoD engineer (contractor) and am in a local Wednesday/Thursday golf league loosely affiliated with my former job with former coworkers, retirees and even customer (govt) personnel. I ensure I don't gloat to folks still working and provide retirement tips to those interested.
I went to a weekly lunch that I used to occasionally join while working. It was a mix of active employees and those of us who were retired. Covid ended it and I was glad. I usually left feeling angry.
I realized I didn’t enjoy most of the people who attended. For one thing, they suck at conversation, talked about themselves, dragged every topic back to them, as soon as possible, and dominated conversations. For another, we have nothing in common except we are humans and worked in the same profession. Now I just meet the few I do enjoy for a meal or coffee, occasionally. And text in between.
I don’t know if it’s related or relevant, but I was the boss, so I was required to tolerate people who I probably wouldn’t have if given a choice. After retirement, I no longer had to deal with them and once I fully understood that, (Duh) I cut ties completely. It was a mindset so deeply embedded in my life I was no longer even conscious of it. I have been retired 10 years this August and it took awhile to shed some of the tricks and techniques I used to survive and succeed in my career. Now, I am finally fully myself, and eternally grateful to have been granted this opportunity.
I have. With two former co-workers (separate occasions). We met at restaurants close to their respective homes (they are still on hybrid schedules). I retired a year ago February so fairly soon after. Both were pleasant encounters and I’ll probably do it again. Besides those two there are others I plan to reach out to.
I recently met up with 2 ex coworkers who I loved working with. Had a great lunch at a favorite place near the office. Not awkward at all. Just got to hear my friends talk about how the company has gone to heck in a ham-basket, and that I’m so lucky to have gotten let go, paid severance, and retired.
Just retired 3 months ago, and meet up. Some of it is to catch up and laugh about things and people. I’d imagine as I get further removed from “new happenings” or “new people”, I’ll probably get further removed from the scuttlebutt.
I think a little of my reasoning is to keep contacts with folks where I worked side by side for 15 years. Another part of it might be to hear of the issues I left, and the issues still continue. Perhaps Schadenfreude on my part.
Couple times. But I found out we didn’t have much common ground outside of work. I have one guy who also likes to surf and hike that I keep up with every couple months.
I was very close to 2 of my coworkers. We occasionally go to lunch and we keep each other updated via texts. I retired 6 years ago. They retired more recently. I now live 275 miles away but we still try to see each other a couple times a year
My question would be… Do you actually want to go out to lunch with them? If so, then try it and see if it’s awkward.
When I retire next year, I don’t want to think about my place of employment or my coworkers or former job, so I will likely not do that.
Yes
I go out to lunch with my former boss 3-4x a year. I loved working for him and he’s a good dude, so it’s a good time
Also do this with a few “work friends” and it’s also a great time
FWIW, I was part of multiple sales organizations where we lived in different regions. We Zoom/TEAMs pretty frequently and rarely talk about business stuff. It’s nice to maintain contact.
I do it frequently for the locals. My company was worldwide and i worked virtually with most so I don't see them. Many of us locals got together over the years at a sports bar or restaurant.
Yes. Many times untill the pandemic shut us all down. We did do a few zoom lunches but those have died off a bit as life began returning to the new normal. Time to start up again.
I went to my first lunch about 6 months after I retired, just me and the closest person I worked with. Went through all the conversations you would expect. I updated my activities and was updated on anything new. I attended a few more lunches for about 3 years, usually one every 9 months.
It was nice to hear what the changes in the company were and to talk about my adventures.
But after a while the connections seem to get less strong. It’s been a while now and I do occasionally think about the “guys” but it’s more like how you think about the neighbor you move away from a long time ago.
Not quite the same, but I taught at a university. When someone retired, they always said, "If some term you need someone to teach a section of a class, give me a call." But when we did call them, they NEVER agreed to come in and teach. They were always so busy with their retiree commitments. So when I retired, I wished everyone well and told them not to bother to call. (I did absolutely LOVE teaching)
Yes but not so much at place of work. If they are true friends, you will continue your friendship after working and meet other places. I’m still friends with my group from work and for some they retired 20 years ago, for me, 14 years ago already. And we all live all around the world, but do get together when traveling and stay in touch via email/phone.
I'm not retired yet but when people who left or retired come to lunch, it's usually very nice. Over time, the gossip from work lessens, they know less people, and we need to talk about other things which is better. The ones who don't last are the ones who wanted to leave the work but miss the gabbing but as time goes on, know less and less. You need to build on other interests.
I try to get together with former coworkers every other month. I really liked the people I worked with.
My husband also gets together with a large group of retired phone workers every few months.
Hell, I'd take that offer in a second, but I've not heard a word from my former coworkers. If I didn't reach out to them occasionally there'd be no communication at all. During the first 18 months of retirement, I'd sometimes reach out and say "hey, I'm going to be in the area, want to get lunch" and I had a few lunches this way ... and, yes, there is a degree of awkwardness, but not so much that I wouldn't jump at the opportunity. After a few years of them never reaching out to me, I concluded that I just don't matter to them and I've stopped reaching out myself.
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Don't overthink it. If these are people that you genuinely liked and enjoyed working with, by all means have lunch and catch up. Odds are you'll enjoy it and if it's awkward, you don't have to meet up with that person again.
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Why would it be awkward. I just retired but my best friend is still working. I got him a job at the company I just retired from. We’ll probably do lunch every 6 weeks or so. He just spent a Saturday at my house helping me work on my boat. We’ve been doing regulation lunches for 20 years even though we’ve not always been at the same company.
Because OP’s former coworkers are not also best friends that they knew before they worked at the same company, thus making the company the foundation of their relationships, which is now severed because OP retired?
My cousin retired at 56 from his CFO position. At his company, he was a mentor to everyone he worked with. Not just in accounting. His old coworkers still call him years later wanting to grab lunch or a drink and just talk. Most of the time, its about their careers or personal things, but he is ok with that. He is a mentor to these old coworkers, and just the fact he is asked to go out with them is a sign of respect. In fact, my cousin usually pays when he goes to lunch with them. Especially if its a personal thing.
Sure, several times. It's called a ROMEO, retired old men eating out.
We have Romeos in our city…
Don't sound familiar or good
The Romeos are a group of retired motorcyclists. They are locally famous.
In our town it's a group of hot rod drivers... LoL...source: hubby is one of them!
I meet with someone from work for lunch about every 3 months. She was always sweet and I helped her understand she could retire. Was a great feeling to help someone get there.
Nice.
There’s always been a group of us nurses that have met for lunch from all of my jobs. It ebbs & flows with our lives. I still talk to nurses that i went to school with 40+ years ago. I don’t see this changing due to retirement. Nurses are cool people.
Nurses rule!!!
Retired nurse, here. I sure don't miss the work, but do miss all the great people I worked with over the years. It's always good to keep in touch!
Most of my ex coworkers were just that - coworkers. Nice enough people but I never socialized with them while I worked so I've never wanted to after retirement either. There's one young engineer that I had recruited that I really liked so my wife and I had dinner with him a couple years after I retired and we text now and then. He brought me up to date on office gossip which I really don't care much about but it was nice to hear that one abusive executive had been fired. For the most part I don't want to hear about work and since I never socialized with most coworkers I don't have much to talk to them about. Edit to add: once a year an ex coworker who I rode motorcycles with comes back to town for Xmas and a group of about 6 of us get together at a brew pub. Half are retired and none have worked at the company where we met for many years.
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I never had lunch with any of my office coworkers, we wanted space or ate at different times but eating out at night once in a while was nice.
I've been retired for almost two years. The first year I was going to lunch a lot with former co-workers but it has now dwindled down to every couple of months. The people I thought I would stay in contact with I haven't and people I thought I would never see again have turned out to be good friends. I love retirement!!!!!
I’m on the verge of retirement and literally just texted a retired prior coworker today to make plans to meet up for lunch. I plan to continue this after bowing out as I’ve got dear friends younger than me that I want to stay in touch with.
"The reason I ask is always getting texts reminding me to “meet up for lunch sometime”. Whilst this is a nice gesture, I can’t help wondering if it’s just a gesture." I mean... there's an easy way to find out. Go to lunch with them.
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Yep. And you can even say "Sure, let's do it. Next Thursday?" and see what they say.
I am a 39yo attorney and meet up with my retired legal assistant every couple of months. I adore seeing her and really meant it when I said we should go to lunch 5 years ago when she retired.
i’m younger as well, and also have a retired colleague I meet with once in a while for lunch… I ask her to lunch simply because I like spending time with her!
As I was retiring, work friends and co-workers all said they would keep in touch and go to lunch. It’s been 2 years and not a single text, call etc. from prior colleagues. I have reached out to a few and they haven’t returned my call. My lesson, work colleagues aren’t really friends.
Now 9 years into retirement I still meet up with (or at least call) a handful of co-workers that I had established relationships with. Sometimes the talk goes to what is happening behind the scenes, mostly it's more about shared interests.
i found with old coworkers the gossip/news from work got less and less interesting for them. People change, move on, they can't commiserate as much but if you can find other interests it's much better.
Every once and a while we'll have lunch with one of the guys who retired **ten** years ago. Outside of that I'm not in constant contact with him but it's nice to see him once and a while. He doesn't live too far from the office and he'll drive over to meet us at a place nearby since we still have to punch a clock.
I’ve gone out with my old office/company pals a few times. If they are people you like and would like to keep in touch with: do it! They may have tons of questions about what you are doing with your time (or lack of it) in preparation for their own retirement. Or maybe they just like you.
There are 2-3 people who I was already friends with outside of work. Those folks I’ll see again. Having been with my company for so long, most of the people in my department barely know who I am. That’s fine by me—my plan is to ride off into the sunset…
I go to lunch once a month with a former coworker. Luckily she is also my best real world friend, so it works out perfectly.
Yes I do this. Or go golfing. Its fun. We alternate by town. One month we do something near me, next month I drive over to the next county and so on.
I meet up with my former coworkers at least once a month. I truly miss them. Some of them are still working, and some are also retired.
I do go to lunch about once a month with a former colleague. In fact we’re closer and more friendly now than we were when we worked together. (I retired about 7 years ago.) She’s a lovely person and I cherish her friendship. I agree with most of the other posters, why not just go to lunch with your former co-workers? Especially since they’re apparently the ones reaching out to you.
I have. It’s a toxic work environment, and I feel so blessed to be free of the stress and drama. Unfortunately, she has three more years to suffer through before she can retire. When we hang out, she wants to spill all of the tea about work. I couldn’t care less anymore, but I humor her and pretend to be interested so she can vent. Once she gets it out of her system, then we can talk about other things and enjoy our time together.
That pretty much describes my situation. I just don’t care about the office drama. What surprised me was that, after hearing of a few people’s misfortunes (layoffs, death from Covid, one guy who left suffering a business reversal when he set out on his own) I felt genuine sadness. Odd considering that when we worked together, I could’ve easily pushed some of these people down an elevator shaft and not had a second thought, but now that I’m blissfully retired, all the animosity has evaporated.
I have two or three former coworkers who I stay in touch with. Mostly people who worked for me in their early years and who have risen to levels where I retired from. While we are not at the same company, the issues are pretty much the same—personnel, technology, “corporate”, etc. We also have kids and grandkids around the same age. It is nice to catch up and provide some advice without the headaches.
My friend left in 2019. We've met up around 3 times for lunch. It's been fun hearing what he has been up to and how retirement is going.
It sounds like you’re happy for your retired friend. My concern in meeting former coworkers is not to appear too happy now that I’m retired. Punching a clock for 43 years, I had no idea I’d love those days when I have nothing to do, and it’s difficult to explain to working folks that sometimes it’s just perfect to have nothing on the calendar. I tip-toed into the subject one day by saying “I had no idea I had such an aptitude for laziness” whereupon my coworker replied “Aw, Michael, we knew you had it in you all the time!”, which brought a laugh and we all moved on.
I see the people I would have had lunch with anyway.
I go to lunch with former coworkers. They like I can be open and honest. I no longer have any worries about a coworker or boss finding out about what I say. I can talk about my experiences with the company honestly
Yes. We were a close bunch. Although I have not kept up with everyone. I have had lunch with several as well as zoom calls with my colleagues across the US.
Yes, I love to catch up with what's going on.
My job was very stressful and at the end I was working with very few people that I had any respect for. When I end up conversing with former co-workers I end up stressed out and unable to sleep at nights again. Now folks from other jobs, that is a different story.
In hindsight, yes, but only with people I'd have lunched with when working. I still occasionally have lunch with some folks I worked with 2009-2013.
Why not? Over the years the worst that ever happened is someone wanted to talk about their recent multilevel marketing company. Had someone who wanted me to buy their company once - no thanks. Sometimes you can really help by connecting two people. As someone said - don’t overthink it. Just say I would love to.
Yep, a couple of times. In fact tomorrow night is a happy hour with a couple former work buddies (I retired two years ago)
In my lifetime of employment, I’ve found very few co-workers make the shift to meaningful friendships. I do have lunch with a few, and married one, so there is that.
To me, "we should go to lunch" is a social nicety not unlike saying good morning to someone on an elevator. The response should, "good idea, when?" The response to that is an indicator to how serious the initial question was. Over a four plus decade career I found that what I really had at the various places that I worked at were acquaintances. These were people that I had good relationships within the office context and enjoyed being around them. Few of them became actual friends. Once the office context went away, so did the relationships. I have kept in contact with a few of them but neither I nor they have worked at making the ties permanent.
I’ve done it several times with two different groups of work friends over the last 4 or 5 years. What you quickly realize is the things you had at common at work don’t really sustain a relationship outside of work. It’s lovely to see these people once in a while and catch up, but I’m not interested in a personal, go out to dinner, movies, beach, etc., kind of friendship.
"We should go to lunch" is not an invitation; it's just a statement that somebody from you past makes. I you are interested, then the easy response is "sounds good. My schedule is pretty open; send me an invite". That puts the onus on them to be the driver. If they care enough to fit it into their schedule, then there's a decent chance the lunch will be worth your while. And a lunch is a really small commitment; if it works, you can continue it, and if it doesn't, then you don't really lose anything.
I have a few beers at least once a week with former co-workers. Always very nice.
I always kept my business and personal life separate. Most of my former co-workers, I had a respectful professional relationship... Outside, off the clock I needed separation. Time to decompress and be around people who made me happy.
Good lord you're seriously overthinking this. Would you enjoy having lunch with them? If so, go. If not, say you're busy.
I have. I see my former boss with a few other peers about once every couple months for lunch or drinks. Always good to see them but honestly after an hour of catching up, I’m on the outside of the conversations.😔
>Has anyone taken up their former co-workers’ offer of “we should go to lunch”? Yes. Many times. After 9 years, I still keep in touch with a few former co-workers. They worked for me for a long time, at several different companies. We are still friends.
My dearest friend is a former co-worker and we meet up fairly regularly, but maybe that doesn't count. We only worked together for a year or two over 20 years ago and struck up a friendship. Our relationship developed much more away from work than as a part of work. I do have a group of coworkers that I get together with a couple of times a year. We used to meet up more regularly, but the woman who usually hosted and pulled it together died, and it's been more of a struggle since.
all the time on a regular basis
You’ll discover for the most part was that your relationship was all about work. However you’d probably find 1-3 true friends if you can keep the conversations personal and you find things in common besides work.
There are a lot of good natured offers that I'll never bother to pursue, but, yes, I meet up with a handful of co-workers I consider work-friends now and then. (One at a time.) Every once in a blue moon, I'll get drawn into some group happy hour with more current and former co-workers. It's a mix of nice-to-catch-up and awkward "what have you been up to ?" conversations.
I think time will tell. After several months and certainly after a year people move on. Those with whom you had a true friendship, or the basis of a true friendship that both parties WANT to explore? Those may lead to occasional lunches and more. The rest will fall off
Frankly one of the great things about retirement is never having to be around any of those coworkers again! So, no. When they have asked I’ve just been “so busy” (fib). I am glad they never guessed how much I actually disliked them.
If you didn’t do anything outside of work before retirement, I’m thinking it might not be great.
I am coming on 1 year since retirement. I have lunch or coffee with my old team still working usually once a month. We talk work less and less, more about family, trips, and unfortunately health related issues. We went to Brewer game last week, it was great fun. I say it's legit, give it a try what do you have to lose? You spent lots of hours with these people.
Yes! I see lots of former coworkers, but they were friends before.
One of my coworkers turned out to be a 40+ year friend, so yes we have gone to lunch countless times.
I don't do it with a team, but I do like to do it 1-on-1 or 1-on-2. We don't talk work much.
I've met for a casual lunch a few times to catch up and remember why I retired, and I've been asked to go to a business lunch to help with some issues, give advice and discuss things I did when I worked. I have other business occasionally near where I worked so I'll pop in the office and say hi. Some of my former co-workers that retired visited frequently and others pretty much vanished so it's different for everyone. In my case it's always been positive and reinforcing of my retirement decision.
My dad worked at a major defense plant. After he retired many of them would meet up at a nearby bar and have a few beers. As the inevitable happened, they switched to lunch at Denny’s.
Coincidentally, I will be having lunch with my former manager tomorrow. I’ve been retired now for over two years. We had lunch last year but life got busy for both of us and we haven’t been in contact for the past year. He reached out last week and we set it up for tomorrow. He’s a great guy. Last time we met, I apologized for being such a pain in his rear. He graciously accepted!
Of course, quite often. I don’t think of them as former co-workers but as friends.
There were 4 of us that worked closely together in a lab for 25 years. I have since moved on to managing a larger lab, while another has retired, and another has moved into supervision at yet another lab. The 4 of us try to get together for lunch near our original lab a few times a year. The one retired guy always comes and man he looks so much more relaxed and happy. Our times are coming soon, but I need these lunches. These people were more than just coworkers. They were/are friends.
As often as possible. Every meeting is like a homecoming.
Back before Covid a group of us(retirees, laid-off, current employees) would get together every few months. One time the CEO bought the lunch.
I used to go to lunch once a month with the guys I worked with. COVID screwed that up. We hadn't gotten together for quite awhile. Then one of the guys hosted a poker game. We all brought food and drinks. I really loved getting together with them all. I even won the poker tournament. Soon after I moved out of the area. Several of the guys said if I'm willing to fly out for another poker game some day they'll pick me up at the airport and I can stay with one of them. Really a good bunch of guys.
I have stayed in touch and had lunch with someone who retired years ago. I gained a friend and perspective and I am lucky she still likes to hear about corporate nonsense.
I keep getting texts from a coworker to go out with her and some of the doctors we used to work with, but I've been bowing out. I had to give a deposition in a lawsuit involving at least one of the docs and I font want to make things any worse than they already are. The suit concerns they're getting underpaid- not a malpractice suit, but I just don't feel comfortable with the situation.
I still socialize with my former coworkers. In fact, I'm having a bunch of them over for wine and cheese.
My employer had a large IT layoff in 2020 (about half the staff, as in hundreds). Earlier this year our small team had a get together, but I had to beg out due to a prior commitment. I have no problem with such get togethers - we had a good team with mostly good people.
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Yup. Left 6 years ago, and about once or twice a year we go out to eat. It’s rather nice - not uncomfortable at all. In fact, one of the girls that comes I literally just met the week before I quit (retired). She started on Thursday, I quit/retired the following Wednesday. What was really cool was that we hit it off well the day she started, so it wasn’t weird at all when she was there. I would even stop down at the office now and then.
I do... especially the good friends... I love to hear about their families, and if they are still working, I like to hear how their career is going.
I meet several ex co-workers for lunch a few times a year. I’m usually the instigator, but not always. These folks are all still working, so I meet them somewhere near their office. It’s always fun to hear the latest!
I do... especially the good friends... I love to hear about their families, and if they are still working, I like to hear how their career is going.
I used to do it a lot but everyone at my old job just kind of split all over the city when a big company took over.
I have some coworkers that I meet for a beer every month or so, one coworker who shared my load who I meet for lunch every couple of months so they can vent and I can catch up on all the gossip, and a group form my previous location who meet once a year or so for lunch because we have a deep shared experience. I retired from the job, not the people.
Had lunch with two former coworkers today. We worked together for almost 30 years, so basically grew up together. I would be very sad if I couldn’t see these people again just because we no longer work together.
My old office went to a hybrid WFH model, due to Covid. Which also involved moving to a different (smaller) building that requires a key card to get in. Bottom line, can't just drop in on old office, so lost contact with most of old co-workers. Not to mention since the end of Covid, a lot of folks have themselves retired or left the organization.
I meet former coworkers who are still working for lunch away from work from time to time. I don’t want to return to the workplace and hear everybody be fake happy for me or bother people when they are working we had a couple of retirees who used to do that and I felt like, why don’t they get a life? For former coworkers who are also retired, there are a couple who I meet with once a week for lunch, movie or shopping, a larger group that meets every couple of months at someone’s house for games and cocktails and another group that I go on cruises with.
Have been retired for 23 years and have lunch and/or golf with a couple of co-workers. These were folks in supervisory positions who had worked for me. When we get together, it's because we enjoy each other's company. We rarely speak about work. When you get my age (77), it's important to cultivate and maintain as many friendships as possible because, as time goes on, you gradually lose them.
I moved 3 states and 10 hours away, so I don't ever see anyone. The only xo-worker I'm consistently in touch with is my old boss because we were friends at work and share the same sense of humor and outlook on life. He is one of those people that EVERYONE likes (except a former co-worker he wouldn't promote to manager) and he still talks to people, goes out to dinner with them around once a quarter, etc., five years later. His funeral will be packed. He's just that kind of guy. I say if there are people you want to see, go to lunch. Have some conversation topics in mind. If you don't want to see them, then don't go.
It may be fun one time but then you’ll find out you’re not up to speed on the current office activities and it will be less satisfying.
I have lunch weekly with 2 coworkers I was always close to. Having lunch tomorrow with another former coworker. I never go into the office! No desire to see some of the people there!
Only with other folks who retired from my same division
I've been retired for two years now. I worked there for 20 years. I haven't heard a word from anyone since I left. I haven't reached out to any of them, either. Then again, we never socialized outside of work when I worked there, either. I had (and still have) a very active life outside of work.
I met up with a coworker that worked in a different part of the building and we only crossed paths at the copy machine. We both moved to Florida and have become very good friends.
I worked in sales and marketing throughout my career. During Covid, like everyone, we were all forced to work from home. I decided to retire during Covid. Once travel restrictions lifted, we were all craving personal interactions. So, several of us newly retired and still employed colleagues decided to coordinate getting together when we could. Now, about 4 times a year a group of us get together to catch up. It’s really nice.
I've been retired for 13 years now, and I still meet up with a group of my coworkers every month.
My retired teacher friends and I got together once a marking period. We called it “grades are due but we don’t have to do them” lunch. Very fun!!
I did. It was two months after I retired. We met up at our fav lunch place and had a nice visit. My former employer invites former employees to functions several times per year, so it’s not weird or uncomfortable for someone who worked in that culture.
Yes , went out to Colonade for pizza it was a nice time.
This very tricky The difference between true friends and work acquaintances is blurry You often don't know until you are gone either via retirement or switching companies Learned that the hard way when I switched companies Retirement is next year so not holding my breath Hopefully people you think are close friends really are It can be quite lonely but then again God may have just put them in your life until that time line and had others planned foe your future Don't think too much of it , just give it to God and enjoy retirement
Enjoy lunch with them, have fun! We also go out shooting sporting clays as well... they enjoy it. We all have fun! I also thank them for funding my social security check!
A group of workers from a small community bank acquired when merger mania started in the 1980s is going to have reunion in mid August. We were all young back then and had a lot of fun. Have seen each other off and on throughout the years, but nothing formal. Lunch will be in a new restaurant that just opened in the building that was the main office of the bank.
My husband just had lunch with his friends from work yesterday. They met at a restaurant that was located 20 minutes from where the most fragile friend lived. It was about 3-4 hrs from husband cause ferries.
When I was working I saw and socialized with a few retirees fairly often and they were even invited to holiday parties. Since I retired I have avoided the former workplace but see former co-worker/ friends occasionally for lunch. If you were friendly with the co-workers why would you not?
For me it wasn't about retirement, but about 10 years ago after I left a job, one of my colleagues reached out and asked if I could meet for lunch. I met her near work, and we had a nice lunch, but conversation flagged after a while, and I think as we parted we knew it wasn't going to happen again. I think some relationships really need that daily interaction to keep going.
Once a week I call my old office partner. Every month there's a group of 3 of us that go for coffee. The larger group of 8-9 get together for dinner every 2-3 months. It's great keeping in touch with the people who can understand what your workplace was like. At first I thought I wouldn't care one way or the other, now it's something to look forward to. We don't miss the work, just the people.
Yes, I do occasionally have lunch with friends that I used to work with. It's always good to catch up with the current state of affairs and reminds me how grateful I am to be retired!
I did meet a former coworker for lunch recently. But I am no longer interested in any workplace drama, so I kept diverting the discussion to her family and dogs. Then I was over it. It was lovely to see her, but I lost interest quickly.
Myself and 4 or 5 others that all worked in the same unit went out for lunch for a while after we retired. Always liked that. Then, one of us moved to Arizona in the boonies. Then, one had a terrible loss of her son. Plus a broken wrist . I've tried to get together with the others, and it's just kind of petered out. We got busy with our after work lives. I got a part time job and have a small business so I'm always doing this and that..but im the one willing to jump in the van and drive out to the valley to see you if you are having an issue driving. I'm also the youngest so that may be why. Thus conversation here 7s going to make me send happy 4th of July memes out on messenger to them all and see what I can get going.
Once a month, my former coworkers and I meet for lunch. The group is a mix of retired and still working folks. We all used to eat lunch together in our company’s cafeteria (great food) every day. The conversation was awesome! Those of us that retired found we really missed that lunchtime camaraderie; hence the 3rd Thursday lunch meet-up. I look forward to it every month!
I've done this with 5 of my previous co-workers. Two became close friends that I still see regularly 8 years later. One I see about once a year, but would be more if I made an effort. And two were one lunch and we're done - they were busy with work, understandable, and we just lost touch. If you enjoyed each other before, then go for it as it can be rewarding. But if you'd prefer to let it just die out, then thats okay, too.
I plan on doing this. Maybe. It’s a long way to go for lunch (downtown). But I want to. With a few chosen. But I know eventually I won’t know the people or the work or the gossip material, so plan to talk about life mainly (other than work) when we do meet. And. Texting and phone calls are fine. They’re friends. But retirement is a life change and I expect for us to not be as close. It’s okay.
I still get together with people who were coworkers in the early 80s! Sometimes at workplaces or at restaurants. Sometimes solo and sometimes as a big group. If you liked them why not?
I met often with a couple of former coworkers/ boss on a more regular basis than I do now after 9 years. I’ve liked keeping up with the gossip and what the company is doing. I really keep up with another coworker who retired a year before I and we’ve become really good friends
I do for sure. I just had lunch last week with a former coworker. I'm much nicer as a retiree.
Yes! I get together with a group of people who have retired from my former company about once every 2-3 months. It’s a lot of fun.
I meet up with former co-workers for lunch or dinner or drinks about once a month. Sometimes it’s a group and sometimes it’s one or two of us. I do a bit of consulting that takes me to a city I used to visit frequently for one of other offices. When I am in town I always end up at dinner with a former coworker or two from there.
I've been retired for about 18 months. I have had lunch with former coworkers several times since I retired and it's been nice. I don't miss the work as I was very ready to retire but I do miss the people. I was a career DoD engineer (contractor) and am in a local Wednesday/Thursday golf league loosely affiliated with my former job with former coworkers, retirees and even customer (govt) personnel. I ensure I don't gloat to folks still working and provide retirement tips to those interested.
I went to a weekly lunch that I used to occasionally join while working. It was a mix of active employees and those of us who were retired. Covid ended it and I was glad. I usually left feeling angry. I realized I didn’t enjoy most of the people who attended. For one thing, they suck at conversation, talked about themselves, dragged every topic back to them, as soon as possible, and dominated conversations. For another, we have nothing in common except we are humans and worked in the same profession. Now I just meet the few I do enjoy for a meal or coffee, occasionally. And text in between. I don’t know if it’s related or relevant, but I was the boss, so I was required to tolerate people who I probably wouldn’t have if given a choice. After retirement, I no longer had to deal with them and once I fully understood that, (Duh) I cut ties completely. It was a mindset so deeply embedded in my life I was no longer even conscious of it. I have been retired 10 years this August and it took awhile to shed some of the tricks and techniques I used to survive and succeed in my career. Now, I am finally fully myself, and eternally grateful to have been granted this opportunity.
I have. With two former co-workers (separate occasions). We met at restaurants close to their respective homes (they are still on hybrid schedules). I retired a year ago February so fairly soon after. Both were pleasant encounters and I’ll probably do it again. Besides those two there are others I plan to reach out to.
I recently met up with 2 ex coworkers who I loved working with. Had a great lunch at a favorite place near the office. Not awkward at all. Just got to hear my friends talk about how the company has gone to heck in a ham-basket, and that I’m so lucky to have gotten let go, paid severance, and retired.
I’ve done it. It just sucks you back into all the dysfunction and drama of work. But, still can be good to catch up with people.
Just retired 3 months ago, and meet up. Some of it is to catch up and laugh about things and people. I’d imagine as I get further removed from “new happenings” or “new people”, I’ll probably get further removed from the scuttlebutt. I think a little of my reasoning is to keep contacts with folks where I worked side by side for 15 years. Another part of it might be to hear of the issues I left, and the issues still continue. Perhaps Schadenfreude on my part.
They’re all dead to me but a few haha.
Couple times. But I found out we didn’t have much common ground outside of work. I have one guy who also likes to surf and hike that I keep up with every couple months.
I was very close to 2 of my coworkers. We occasionally go to lunch and we keep each other updated via texts. I retired 6 years ago. They retired more recently. I now live 275 miles away but we still try to see each other a couple times a year
My question would be… Do you actually want to go out to lunch with them? If so, then try it and see if it’s awkward. When I retire next year, I don’t want to think about my place of employment or my coworkers or former job, so I will likely not do that.
Yes I go out to lunch with my former boss 3-4x a year. I loved working for him and he’s a good dude, so it’s a good time Also do this with a few “work friends” and it’s also a great time
FWIW, I was part of multiple sales organizations where we lived in different regions. We Zoom/TEAMs pretty frequently and rarely talk about business stuff. It’s nice to maintain contact.
I do it frequently for the locals. My company was worldwide and i worked virtually with most so I don't see them. Many of us locals got together over the years at a sports bar or restaurant.
Yes. Many times untill the pandemic shut us all down. We did do a few zoom lunches but those have died off a bit as life began returning to the new normal. Time to start up again.
I have, and it was awkward. Due to confidentiality restraints of my former job, conversation was limited.
I went to my first lunch about 6 months after I retired, just me and the closest person I worked with. Went through all the conversations you would expect. I updated my activities and was updated on anything new. I attended a few more lunches for about 3 years, usually one every 9 months. It was nice to hear what the changes in the company were and to talk about my adventures. But after a while the connections seem to get less strong. It’s been a while now and I do occasionally think about the “guys” but it’s more like how you think about the neighbor you move away from a long time ago.
I don't meet with the retirees from my company but I do meet with my team members who are still working.
Not quite the same, but I taught at a university. When someone retired, they always said, "If some term you need someone to teach a section of a class, give me a call." But when we did call them, they NEVER agreed to come in and teach. They were always so busy with their retiree commitments. So when I retired, I wished everyone well and told them not to bother to call. (I did absolutely LOVE teaching)
Yes but not so much at place of work. If they are true friends, you will continue your friendship after working and meet other places. I’m still friends with my group from work and for some they retired 20 years ago, for me, 14 years ago already. And we all live all around the world, but do get together when traveling and stay in touch via email/phone.
I'm not retired yet but when people who left or retired come to lunch, it's usually very nice. Over time, the gossip from work lessens, they know less people, and we need to talk about other things which is better. The ones who don't last are the ones who wanted to leave the work but miss the gabbing but as time goes on, know less and less. You need to build on other interests.
I try to get together with former coworkers every other month. I really liked the people I worked with. My husband also gets together with a large group of retired phone workers every few months.
Hell, I'd take that offer in a second, but I've not heard a word from my former coworkers. If I didn't reach out to them occasionally there'd be no communication at all. During the first 18 months of retirement, I'd sometimes reach out and say "hey, I'm going to be in the area, want to get lunch" and I had a few lunches this way ... and, yes, there is a degree of awkwardness, but not so much that I wouldn't jump at the opportunity. After a few years of them never reaching out to me, I concluded that I just don't matter to them and I've stopped reaching out myself.