A growing number of American women say Congress should act now to boost funding for Social Security rather than waiting until its insolvency in ten years, finds a new study out today by the National Institute on Retirement Security (NIRS).
According to the findings from the study, “What Do Women Think About Retirement?” almost all women surveyed (86%) believe legislators need to increase support on Social Security, and 89% want the next administration to work with Congress in developing a successful Social Security funding solution. Another 87% want the program to remain a priority no matter the state of federal budget deficits.
This comes from the fact that, as reported by NIRS, 80% of women surveyed think there is a retirement crisis in the U.S., and 78% say the typical worker cannot save enough to afford a secure retirement.
Instead, most American women express strong support for pension plans. Eight two percent believe that workers should have a pension, and 75% agree that those with the guaranteed employee benefit are most likely to have a secure retirement, as more say that without one, it can be tougher to achieve the “American Dream.”
As reported by the findings, women face concerns regarding retirement. Eighty-one percent believe employers should contribute more money to workers’ retirement plans, while 76% believe that retirement is “only getting harder,” due to inflation (77%), rising healthcare costs (77%), debt (58%), and fewer pensions (58%).
Despite feeling confident over the state of the economy in 2024, women continue to feel derailed with their retirement savings, due to a decrease in access to workplace retirement plans and caregiving demands, says NIRS.
This leads to a growing number of women reporting interests in “pension-like” guaranteed income streams.
“If policymakers are serious about improving the financial resilience of women, they’ll need to implement pragmatic retirement solutions that will help women shore up their retirement position,” said Dan Doonan, executive director at NIRS. “Women clearly see increasing pension coverage as part of the retirement equation, and they want to see action now on Social Security.”
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