New public opinion research finds that Americans are united in their concern about retirement. In overwhelming numbers, Americans say the nation faces a retirement crisis, with Democrats at 80 percent, Republicans at 75 percent, and Independents at 75 percent.
These findings are contained in a new research, Retirement Insecurity 2019: Americans’ Views of the Retirement Crisis, published by the National Institute on Retirement and based on research conducted by Greenwald & Associates.
The key research findings are as follows:
- In overwhelming numbers, Americans are worried about their ability to attain and sustain financial security in retirement.
- Even as the nation remains deeply politically polarized, Americans are united in their sentiment about retirement issues.
- Americans see government playing an important role in helping workers prepare for retirement, but lawmakers in Washington, D.C. just don’t get it. And the new tax law has not helped.
- In contrast to the sentiment about Washington, D.C., efforts by state lawmakers to expand access to retirement accounts for all workers is widely supported by Americans.
- Americans are highly positive on the role of pensions in providing retirement security and see these retirement plans as better than 401(k) plans.
- There is strong support for pension plans for state and local workers, and Americans see these retirement plans as a tool to recruit and retain public workers.
- Millennials are the most concerned about financial security in retirement, and are more willing than other generations to save more.