Workers Remain Confident in Comfortable Retirement

Workers are confident they will live comfortably in retirement despite the tumultuous year that 2020 was.

The 31st Annual Retirement Confidence Survey, conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and Greenwald Research, found that over 70% of workers are at least somewhat confident in their ability to live off of their savings once they retire, more than 30% of which are very confident. The survey included 3,017 Americans aged 25 or older, with 1,507 workers and 1,510 retirees.

The survey discovered that “Half of workers and 7 in 10 retirees say the pandemic has not changed their confidence in achieving a secure retirement. Still, a third of workers and a quarter of retirees say it’s made them somewhat or significantly less confident they will have enough to live comfortably on throughout retirement. About one in 10 workers and one in 20 retirees feel significantly less confident.” Although the majority remain confident, 30% of workers say that the coronavirus pandemic had made it more difficult for them to save for retirement due to fewer hours, lower income or change in job.

The majority of workers who have a workplace retirement savings plan are still satisfied with it, but 30% made changes in the past year. Among those who made changes, 60% increased the amount they are contributing and 25% reduced or stopped their contributions altogether. One-quarter of workers who are offered a workplace retirement plan believe that adding more investment options for after retirement would be helpful, and three-quarters are interested in putting some of their plan savings “into an investment option that would provide guaranteed monthly income for life.”

image: 7 in 10 workers are confident in having enough money to live comfortably in retirement

In the survey, “the median retirement age among retirees is 62 years old, while workers’ median expected retirement age is 65. The past year has caused about one in four workers to adjust the age at which they plan to retire, including 17% who now plan to retire later and 6% who plan to retire earlier.” Nearly half of retirees end up retiring earlier than they plan for. This could be because they were able to afford to do so, because of a health issue or disability or due to changes at their job.

Source: “2021 Retirement Confidence Survey;” EBRI and Greenwald Research, 2021.