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Parents’ Retirement a Tough Act to Follow for Middle-Income Boomers,
Study Says
Chicago, IL., July 21, 2011 - Two out of three (67 percent)
of America’s middle-income Boomers expect that their retirement experience will
be drastically different from that of their parents, according to a recent study
released by the Bankers Life and Casualty Company Center for a Secure Retirement
SM (CSR).
The study, Middle-Income Boomers, Financial Security and the New Retirement, which
focused on 500 middle-income Americans between ages 47 and 65 with income between
$25,000 and $75,000, found that the pensions and guaranteed income are what the
majority (60 percent) of middle-income Baby Boomers envy most about the retirement
of previous generations.
The ideas of being taken care of by family members, slowing down and moving to a
retirement community, (activities commonly associated with the retirement of previous
generations) are being replaced by keeping up with technology (77 percent), working
(78 percent) and staying physically fit (81 percent).
The CSR’s study reveals, nearly one in three (31 percent) Boomers anticipate having
to financially support at least one adult person during retirement and 15 percent
expect that person will be an adult child or children, rather than an elderly parent
(only 9 percent).
There are several factors contributing to this change in retirement outlook. According
to the study, retirement risk has been shifted from employers and the government
to individuals with the demise of corporate pension plans in favor of 401(k) plans,
discontinuation of many employer-paid retiree health benefits and the future of
Social Security and Medicare.
Today, just over half (56 percent) of middle-income Boomers work for an employer
that offers a retirement savings plan. This is less than the national average for
all workers (72 percent). And of those who contribute to a retirement plan at work,
one in four (24 percent) do not receive a match from their employer.
The report also cites one in seven have no pension or retirement accounts at all
and 55 percent of middle-income Boomers have saved less than $100,000.
"The retirement of the Baby Boom generation will not only test the limits of government
programs such as Medicare and Social Security, but also help shape the definition
of retirement itself," said Scott Perry, president of Bankers Life and Casualty
Company, a national life and health insurer. "Boomers may have to take more personal
responsibility for their retirement financial security than was the case of their
parents’ generation and plan for the risks that may jeopardize this security, like
long-term care, inflation and outliving their money."
Methodology
The Bankers Life and Casualty Company Center for a Secure Retirement’s study Middle-Income
Boomers, Financial Security and the New Retirement was conducted in March 2011 by
the independent research firm The Blackstone Group. The complete report can be viewed
atwww.CenterForASecureRetirement.com
About the Center for a Secure Retirement
The Bankers Life and Casualty Company Center for a Secure Retirement is the Company’s
research and consumer education program. Its studies and consumer awareness campaigns
provide insight and practical advice for how everyday Americans can achieve financial
security during retirement.
Established in 1879 in Chicago, Bankers Life and Casualty Company focuses on the
insurance needs of the retirement market. The nationwide company, a subsidiary of
CNO Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE: CNO), offers a broad portfolio of life and health
insurance retirement products designed especially for seniors.
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