Reconsidering Retirement

📖 The Scoop

The economic downturn that began in 2008, the most severe in decades, has hitolder Americans hard. Many have seen huge losses to their 401(k)s. In numerous cases the value of homes —the largest investment most older Americans have ever made —has diminished considerably. In addition, large numbers of American workers, including those 50 and older, have lost their jobs and may have difficulty replacing them. Suddenly the future seems a whole lot less certain, throwing years of planning into doubt. In Reconsidering Retirement, economists Courtney Coile and Phillip Levine go beyond the headlines to explain how the economic crisis will affect the future plans and well-being of older Americans.

Amid well-publicized reports that older workers needed to stay on the job because ofthe crisis, the number of U.S. workers claiming Social Security retirement benefits actually rose substantially from 2008 to 2009. The authors maintain that job loss has been the culprit, leading to premature retirement, and while this trend may have been less noticed, it is perhaps the more significant outcome of the crisis.

Coile and Levine examine the three major characteristics of the recession thought to influence retirement behavior: decline in the stock market, reduced housing values, and a weak labor market. The authors find that lower home prices did not actually affect retirement behavior but that the decline in the stock market did lead some workers to delay retirement, while a weakened labor market actually forced more older workers with fewer skills into retirement. As a result, these early retirees, who rely on Social Security, face a lifetime of lower benefits.

"Workers affected by weak labor markets are more numerous than those affectedby poor stock market returns, are more likely to have low socioeconomic status,and have a more substantially reduced income for the rest of their lives."
—From the introduction

"Public discussion has focused on the effects of the stock market crash and hasfailed to recognize that most of the workers who are affected by stock lossescome from the upper tail of the income distribution. Similarly, falling houseprices have received considerable attention although they have had little impacton workers' retirement decisions. The most pressing problem older workers currentlyface is the labor market, which has received little attention."
—From chapter 8

The legacy of recessions is that those most in need usually are last toreap the benefits of an economic recovery. While the lion's share ofmedia coverage after the economic downturn of 2008–09 has gone to theplight of older workers who remain employed, Courtney Coile and PhillipLevine examine the effects of the economic crisis on all workers approachingretirement age. Some of their findings are counterintuitive and willsurprise many analysts and readers.

In particular, they shine a light on lesser-skilled workers forced intoearly retirement —a number estimated at 378,000 workers. These workerswill be forced into early involuntary retirement, drawing from Social Securitysooner and receiving lower retirement income.

This important book provides a complete picture of older workerstoday, how they will transition into retirement, and what we can do to assistthem as the recession persists.

Genre: Business & Economics / Careers / General (fancy, right?)