Survey: A Large Number of Americans Live in Fear of Retiring Poor
The degree of financial worry for citizens inside of one of the world���s richest nations is significant.
Results of a survey conducted by the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS) show that a majority of Americans are decidedly less than optimistic when it comes to evaluating their chances of retiring with genuine security. Among the pieces of data is the revelation, from nearly 76 percent of respondents, that broad economic conditions will diminish their ability to retire without fear.
The survey also found that 55 percent of Americans ���strongly agree��� with the idea that the United States is looking at a retirement crisis, 88 percent think that the federal government should be doing more to help ensure the nation���s citizens are able to retire securely, and relatedly, 80 percent of us think that workers ���cannot save enough on their own to guarantee a secure retirement.���
One might expect that these figures, when broken down on party lines, would see Democrats comprising the lion���s share of the majority opinions here, and while Democrats do tend to believe these notions in greater numbers, plenty of Republicans are obviously worried, as well. For example, on the matter of the 80 percent who say workers can���t save enough to fund their own secure retirements, although 85 percent of Democrats agreed with that sentiment, 77 percent of polled Republicans did, as well.
The report bluntly explains that ���if current trends continue, the U.S. soon will face rates of poverty among senior citizens not seen since the Great Depression. Of the 18 million workers between the ages of 55 and 64 in 2012, more than four million will be poor or near poor at age 65. This includes 2.6 million Americans considered middle-class prior to retirement.��� Additionally, says the report, ���Americans are united in their anxiety about their economic security in retirement and in their dissatisfaction with national policy makers��� inaction to address the nation���s retirement crisis.���
By Robert G. Yetman, Jr. Editor At Large
