Retirement Security

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Working Together to Help Deliver Retirement Security

The economic crisis – and the Wall Street excesses and corporate abuses that drove it — has put a secure retirement at risk for everyone. Instead of cutting pensions for public employees and force more retirees into poverty, we're working together to help deliver retirement security to more people.

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Fact Check: Learn the Truth About Retirement Security

Fact 1

Today, more than 70 million American workers do not have any type of employer-sponsored retirement plan.

Fact 2

People of color, young people, and low-income earners have the lowest access rates to employer-sponsored retirement plans.

Fact 3

Only 17% of private and public sector workers have access to traditional defined benefit pensions, which provides retirees with a reliable, modest income.

Fact 4

The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that at least 10 percent of Americans age 75 or older will be working or seeking employment by 2018.

Fact 5

Three out of five middle-class new retirees can expect to outlive their financial assets if they attempt to maintain their pre-retirement standard of living. OR The average retired middle-income American will have to reduce their standard of living by 51 percent to avoid outliving their financial assets.

Fact 6

Social Security benefits are less than $1,200 per month for millions of retired low wage workers with no other source of income.

Fact 7

Social Security is largely responsible for the dramatic decline elderly poverty over the last 70 years. Almost 90 percent of all seniors (age 65 and older) receive Social Security; for many, it makes up over half of their income.

Fact 8

Elder poverty rates are twice as high among Blacks and Latinos 65 and older. 19.4 percent of Black seniors and 19.0 percent of Latino seniors have incomes below the federal poverty line.

Fact 9

The wealthiest 1% are not paying their fair share. If everyone contributed the same percentage of their income to fund Social Security, there would be enough funds to sustain and strengthen Social Security far into the future.

Fact 10

Social Security will not bankrupt or ruin our government. In fact, under its current structure, Social Security will remain solvent at least until 2037.

Fact 11

Seven out of 10 public employees get less than $30,000 per retirement.

Fact 12

How financially viable are pensions? Pensions have financially viable for 70 years and were mostly on solid financial ground until the stock market crash.

Fact 13

Pensions do so well that most of the pension dollars paid to firefighters, teachers, and other school employees comes from investment earnings, not contributions by government.

Fact 14

How financially viable are pensions? Pensions have financially viable for 70 years and were mostly on solid financial ground until the stock market crash.