Retirement Equity Lab

Starting December 15th, please tune in to the The Schwartz Center at The New School page for all ReLab research updates. To keep up to date on our research, follow us here: https://www.facebook.com/SCEPA/

The Schwartz Center at The New School SCEPA works to focus the public economics debate on the role government can and should play in the re

America’s elders die sooner and are sicker than their counterparts in other rich nations. American elders also must work longer than their cohort abroad. These trends mean that Americans get fewer years of healthy retirement life than elders in comparable wealthy nations—five years less, in fact. Read more from Teresa Ghilarducci via Forbes:

American Elders Are Short-Changed 5 Years Of Healthy Retirement It's sad to know that the American de facto plan for retirement is working longer and dying sooner.

Contrary to the prevailing narrative that older workers took part in the 'great resignation' new research from Barbara Schuster, Siavash Radpour, and Teresa Ghilarducci finds a tenfold increase in retirements that occurred after job loss. Read the report here:

Please Wait... | Cloudflare If you are on a personal connection, like at home, you can run an anti-virus scan on your device to make sure it is not infected with malware.

Huge congratulations to ReLab Research Director Sia Radpour, who was just elected to the National Academy of Social Insurance!

Out today, ReLab Fellow Owen Davis has a new paper on employment and retirement patterns among older Americans during the pandemic. Read it here:

A Tale of Two Retirements - The New School SCEPA Working Paper—This paper explores how Covid-19 affected the employment and retirement patterns of older workers, with special attention to the distribution of pandemic impacts on those 55 and older. Author: Owen Davis The Covid-19 pandemic dealt an unprecedented shock to older workers and led to a...

Relab's Sia Radpour and Jess Forden discuss some of the impacts of financial dependence on elders and their communities: "Improving the financial security of older Americans will help older Americans achieve greater independence and improve the lives of the community and family members upon whom they rely." More at American Society on Aging:

Elders Rely on Family for Support in Retirement Nearly one in five adults provides unpaid care to an adult ages 50 or older.

According to a new blog by ReLab's Teresa Ghilarducci and Barbara Schuster, working longer is not a panacea as a significant number of older workers face issues with job quality. Read more at American Society on Aging:

Working Longer Not a Panacea for Older Adults Many older adults have jobs that meet the classic definition of a bad job.

Sarah O'Connor, columnist with The Financial Times, investigates the trend of increased retirements due to Covid. She cites our data in her story: older workers w/o college degrees were more likely to retire than before Covid, while those w/ college degrees were less likely to do so.

Sadly, the latest retirement trends are likely increasing inequality.

Covid retirees show work-from-home revolution has not benefited everyone Older people were staying in the labour market for longer — until the pandemic hit

Check out today's Wall Street Journal story on Covid-related retirements. The reporter, Amara Omeokwe, talks to Siavash Radpour, ReLab's Associate Director of Research, about our data on how the pandemic brought out long-standing inequalities in retirement. She also shares personal stories that show what this data means for the older workers affected. https://on.wsj.com/3bsh3WB.

Covid-19 Pushed Many Americans to Retire. The Economy Needs Them Back. The unexpected absence of older American workers is complicating an already difficult labor shortage, since no one knows how many will return.

Great news for New York State residents!

New York allows workers to be enrolled in automatic IRA New York Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law legislation requiring private-sector employers to enroll workers in the state's automatic IRA.

LIVE NOW - The Schwartz Center's Director Teresa Ghilarducci is joining the Milken Institute's Global Conference for an expert panel on how to close the wealth gap. She will share her proposal for a bipartisan retirement plan modeled on the federal Thrift Savings Plan and ReLab's research supporting the need for retirement equity.

For more details on the panel and to watch it live, go to

Practical Steps Promoting Greater Wealth Equality What can be done to help low-and-moderate-income Americans save more and build generational wealth? Watch this Global Conference 2021 panel to learn more.

Today at 11:30am PDT - The Schwartz Center's Director Teresa Ghilarducci will join the Milken Institute's Global Conference for an expert panel on how to close the wealth gap. She will share her proposal for a bipartisan retirement plan modeled on the federal Thrift Savings Plan and ReLab's research supporting the need for retirement equity.

For more details on the panel and to watch it live, go to

Practical Steps Promoting Greater Wealth Equality What can be done to help low-and-moderate-income Americans save more and build generational wealth? Watch this Global Conference 2021 panel to learn more.

Tomorrow at Noon EST—ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci joins the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation's Network on Aging & Work's panel at The Gerontological Society of America's 2021 Annual Meeting entitled, "Unequal prospects for working longer, before and after the pandemic: What do we need to do?" Register and learn more here—https://www.geron.org/programs-services/webinars

Webinars The Gerontological Society of America

“There's a real divergence between the haves & the have-nots.” ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci speaks with The Economist about Covid-induced retirements and our research on how that differs by race, educations level, and more. While some are choosing to retire, others are being pushed out of work & into retirement with less savings. http://ow.ly/9fML50GiI9P

Why are Americans retiring earlier? A lucky few are choosing to put their feet up, but others can ill afford to | The Economist explains

"The debt burden of older households has been increasing for the past 30 years, mostly due to rising student loan debt...for the education of these households’ children & grandchildren." Read SCEPA Research Associate Barbara Schuster's latest for the American Society on Aging. http://ow.ly/xKvy50Ge6W2

Student Debt Weakens Retirement Security + COVID Student loan debt is the fastest growing debt since 1992.

"The debt burden of older households has been increasing for the past 30 years, mostly due to rising student loan debt that pays for the education of these households’ children & grandchildren." Read ReLab Research Associate Barbara Schuster's latest for American Society on Aging on how the student loan crisis affects older household and their ability to save for, and experience, a dignified retirement. http://ow.ly/xKvy50Ge6W2

Student Debt Weakens Retirement Security + COVID Student loan debt is the fastest growing debt since 1992.

Jill Schlesinger writes about ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci's bipartisan proposal, co-authored by Kevin Hassett, on how to help everyday Americans build wealth and reduce inequities in retirement savings.

Read Jill's analysis of their plan and how it compares to other retirement policy reforms, in the The Mercury News.

www.mercurynews.com

ReLab's research on the Covid-induced surge in retirements & how the trend is exacerbating inequality in retirement is featured in MarketWatch. Our director, Teresa Ghilarducci explains how vulnerable older workers retired sooner, while more privileged workers delayed retirement. Read the full story here:
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/how-the-covid-crisis-is-making-retirement-inequality-worse-11631201005

Opinion: How the Covid crisis is making retirement inequality worse At least 1.7 million extra older workers have retired early as a result of the pandemic, research finds

Tonight EST—ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci will be on the final episode in 's "Future of Work" docuseries discussing recent shifts in labor & retirement. Is the future of work—and retirement—simply 'over'? Catch up on the first 2 episodes & watch the last tonight to find out—https://www.pbs.org/show/future-work/

Future of Work | PBS Is the promise of employment --part of the American Dream – still the future of work?

The EITC supports numerous low-income families. But ReLab data finds it also inadvertently suppresses wages—especially for low-income workers age 55+ who are ineligible for the program. Read our latest research on how an EITC expansion would help many low-income olders workers now and in the future—http://ow.ly/oIhy50G6ByH

How Expanding EITC Will Benefit 1.5 Million Low-Income Older Workers - The New School SCEPA Brief— SCEPA's research finds nearly 1.5 million low-income older workers would benefit from an expansion of the popular Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program. The report—released by our Retirement Equity Lab (ReLab)—finds without expanding the EITC, the program actually lowers wages amo...

Tomorrow at 11am EST— Watch The The Wall Street Journal & Alliance for Lifetime Income's event "The Great Retirement Debate." We face consequential questions about the looming challenges facing Americans preparing for retirement.

The financial security of millions depends on reform, yet, the leading minds on retirement security still disagree on fundamental elements of the problem and how to respond.

Join ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci for an engaging debate against Andrew Biggs to help determine a path forward for business, policymakers and the American consumer: https://wsjcustomevents.com/alliance/ALI_Reg

The Great Retirement Debate: Is America Really Headed for a Retirement Security Cliff? Global supply chains have been tested by everything from the shifting winds of trade policy, to challenges brought on by the global pandemic and localized political or environmental disruptions. Watch on demand to hear discussions where multinational company executives share insights about how to n...

Out today— our new policy note finds 1.5 million low-income older workers would benefit significantly by an expansion of the popular Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) program, which currently excludes them.

Without that expansion, the report shows, the EITC actually lowers wages among non-educated workers, especially those over 55.

"Our research confirms what we feared and suspected," said Teresa Ghilarducci, Professor of Economics and director of the Retirement Equity Lab. "While the EITC provides vital support for low income families, it also has an unintended wage depressing effect. Millions of elderly low-income workers pay the price, experiencing all the wage-cutting effects of EITC without the benefits." http://ow.ly/SeU850G6Bjs

This , it's time to commit to older workers—an increasingly large, often vulnerable population among the hardest hit by Covid. We need an Older Workers' Bureau in the U.S. Department of Labor to enact policies & conduct research to help address their unique issues.

Why We Need An Older Workers Bureau As older workers make up an increasingly large part of the U.S. labor market, it is long past time that we form a government body to address their needs.

ReLab's data on the pandemic-induced surge in early retirements—with 1.7 million more older workers retiring in March 2020 than expected—is included in Business Insider's piece on decisions to make before retirement with a financial planner. http://ow.ly/knpY50FZHy8

4 critical financial decisions you need to make before you retire, according to a financial planner A financial planner suggests deciding whether you'll take another job, when to take Social Security, and whether you'll downsize before retiring.

ReLab's latest research is the center of this Yahoo Finance piece. We find at least 1.7 million more older workers than expected retired due to the pandemic & those without a college degree retired in greater numbers. Read more about the report here—http://ow.ly/647050FZBdX

Retirement swelled during the pandemic, more than expected, study shows Older Americans were more likely to retire during the coronavirus pandemic, which forced millions of workers out of the labor force during its peak.

The time is now for an Older Workers Bureau. ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci's piece for Forbes describes one of the conclusive policy proposals she has found is necessary after decades researching the unique conditions of older workers. http://ow.ly/tb2g50FWph6

Why We Need An Older Workers Bureau As older workers make up an increasingly large part of the U.S. labor market, it is long past time that we form a government body to address their needs.

According to a new McKinsey study, 60% of older workers say their age hurts their future job prospects. However, the researchers only provided commentary on the other vulnerable groups in the study, failing to highlight the barriers and bigotry older workers feel they face. ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci's latest for Forbes.

60% of Older Workers Say Being Old Hurts Their Future Job Prospects The only group with a majority saying their identity held them back on the job market were older workers.

ReLab Research Associate Owen Davis speaks with NPR about our data on older workers retiring early due to Covid, the effect this could have on their finances & on the labor force at large.

Listen on NPR Morning Edition or read more here—https://www.npr.org/2021/08/23/1028993124/these-older-workers-hadnt-planned-to-retire-so-soon-the-pandemic-sped-things-up

These Older Workers Hadn't Planned To Retire So Soon. The Pandemic Sped Things Up Millions more people than expected joined the ranks of the retired in the pandemic. While some did so joyfully, others were reluctant or had no choice.

Like the Women’s Bureau created in the 1920s, an Older Workers' Bureau within the U.S. Department of Labor would focus on older workers—an increasingly large, often vulnerable population among the hardest hit by the Covid-19 recession. See our proposal for an Older Workers' Bureau & more policies to address the unique issues older workers face here: http://ow.ly/KP2M50FRS8i

A Policy Agenda for the Biden Administration: Protecting Older Workers & Strengthening Retirement Security - The New School SCEPA Introduction COVID-19 and the resulting recession has made older workers — especially older people of color and low-income seniors — even more vulnerable to the systemic flaws of our failed retirement system. The COVID-19 recession accelerated unemployment and involuntary retirement among older ...

This map of the country illustrates the U.S. wealth disparities and shows how non-wage assets (stocks, real estate, or bonds) have skyrocketed in the country's wealthy counties in the last few decades while stagnating in distressed communities.

Between 1990 & 2019 alone the asset income gap between top and bottom counties increased six fold. We need more accessible savings vehicles—like ReLab Director Teresa Ghilarducci's proposal to extend the federal Thrift Savings Program—so all U.S. workers can build wealth and adequate retirement savings, not just the rich.

From wealthy enclaves to asset deserts: What the geography of asset income signals about wealth distribution in the United States Dig into the interactive map from the Economic Innovation Group to explore our key findings on the geographic distribution of wealth in the United States.