September 2018

08Sep

2018 Retirement preparedness survey: A Generational Challenge

By Prudential The U.S. retirement landscape has changed dramatically over the past few decades. Fewer workers today are eligible to receive a pension and instead must save for their own retirements, typically through workplace savings plans. Replacement rates for Social Security are declining due to the increase in the “full retirement age.”1 Income is becoming less predictable, thanks in part to new employment models. Health care costs are increasing, and so is longevity—which means workers today don’t just have more...

September 8, 2018
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06Sep

What are the retirement ages around the world?

Retirement ages, or the age when some sort of government pension can be received, varies around the world. The OECD average for a normal pension age is currently 64.3 years for men and 63.7 years for women. While life expectancy has risen in many countries and governments grapple with ageing populations, any attempts to make people wait longer to collect benefits are usually met with fierce opposition, as Russia and Australia found out recently. Read more sbs

September 6, 2018
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03Sep

US. Retirement plans see rise in cyberattacks

While we may have hoped that employer-sponsored retirement plans would escape the types of cyberattacks plaguing financial service providers and dominating headlines, service providers to employee benefit plans have experienced a substantial increase in cyberattacks over the past few years. One plan record keeper noted the number of these attacks have more than doubled since 2016. Cybersecurity threats present new risks for fiduciaries of employer-sponsored retirement plans, as well as for advisers and other providers who serve them. However, these...

September 3, 2018
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03Sep

State Pension Accounting Estimates and Strong Public Unions

By Samuel B. Bonsall (Pennsylvania State University - Department of Accounting), Joseph Comprix (Syracuse University) & Karl A. Muller (Pennsylvania State University - Department of Accounting) Concerns are commonly raised that strong public unions extract generous pension benefits from state governments and are the cause of states’ burdensome pension obligations. Prior research (Anzia and Moe 2015) finds evidence supporting such concerns. Consistent with incentives to minimize such perceptions, our findings suggest that state pension plans with stronger public unions select...

September 3, 2018
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August 2018

30Aug

US. 3 steps toward fixing America’s retirement system

The U.S. retirement system clearly has shortcomings that are leading to widespread insecurity among older workers. In recognition of this anxiety, recent meetings in Washington, D.C., focused on the system's much-needed modernization as the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) launched its Funding Our Future initiative. It focuses on three significant changes that could significantly improve retirement for many U.S. workers: Put Social Security on a sustainable financial path. More than two-thirds of Americans worry that Social Security won't be there when...

August 30, 2018
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25Aug

Graying of U.S. Bankruptcy: Fallout from Life in a Risk Society

By Deborah Thorne (University of Idaho), Pamela Foohey (Indiana University Maurer School of Law), Robert M. Lawless (University of Illinois College of Law) & Katherine M. Porter (University of California - Irvine School of Law) The social safety net for older Americans has been shrinking for the past couple decades. The risks associated with aging, reduced income, and increased healthcare costs, have been off-loaded onto older individuals. At the same time, older Americans are increasingly likely to file consumer bankruptcy,...

August 25, 2018
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24Aug

3 Unusual Retirement Risks You Can’t Ignore

The stock market and personal health are two common things people tend to worry about during their retirement years. Visions of being forced to move in with their children, a lack of savings and real estate prices can also cause anxiety. While those may be top of mind for some, they may not really be the largest threats to financial freedom. 3 unusual retirement risks that you should not ignore Risk of Living too Long This probably seems like a good thing...

August 24, 2018
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22Aug

US. Workers want employers to help more with retirement planning

Many employers appear to be missing the mark when it comes to helping workers prepare for their golden years. While just 16 percent of companies are "very confident" that their employees will be financial secure in retirement, they also often fail to offer the savings tools that their workers actually want, a new study from the nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies shows. "There's a basic disconnect related to worker expectations," said Catherine Collison, president and CEO of the center and...

August 22, 2018
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16Aug

US. Rich Professionals Are Using Pension Plans as a Tax Dodge

There’s one area where the traditional pension plan is getting new life -- as a tax dodge for wealthy business owners. Pensions, also known as defined-benefit plans, can be used by doctors, law partners and wealth managers to stash hundreds of thousands of dollars in income a year. By doing so, they’ll get around the income limits Congress created to bar them from a generous new tax break for owners of pass-through entities, who report the firms’ income on their...

August 16, 2018
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16Aug

US. Have Public Employee Pensions Become More Generous, or Less?

There’s a debate going on about public employee pensions. One study finds that government pensions have become more generous over the years. But a prominent academic replies that public sector retirement benefits have remained steady in generosity and taxpayer costs have actually fallen because public employees are paying more for their pensions. Who’s right? Me, that’s who. It’s an important debate: retirement benefits are needed to attract public employees but excessive benefits can squeeze out other important parts of state and...

August 16, 2018
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