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For many years, there has been much hand-wringing over the fate of social security once the baby boomers reach retirement age. Baby boomers, people born between 1946 and 1964, represent the largest single sustained growth of population in the history of the USA. It is the sheer enormity of this generation that has had economists worried as retirement beckons. According to the US Census Bureau, by the year 2020, an estimated 80 million Americans will have reached or surpassed the conventional age of retirement. With so many boomers retiring and drawing benefits but no longer paying into Social Security, many fear that the Social Security fund may itself go bankrupt.
However, a study released by the Ameri-can Association for Retired Persons (AARP) that examined baby boomers plans for retirement, found that for the most part, this generation is not expected to adhere to the conventional retirement scheme, a fact that may please the worriers in Washington, DC. In its survey, the AARP broke up baby boomers into different categories based on their financial standing, a degree of preparedness for retirement and optimism toward the future. The AARP found that of all groups surveyed, only 13% planned to stop working altogether once they reached retirement age; the remaining 87% planned to continue working for pay. The reasons to continue working varied among the different groups. For some, the plan to continue working is a financial decision. Between 25% and 44% of retirement age reported that they are not financially prepared to retire and will, therefore, continue working past - age. For the remainder of those planning to work past their mid to late 60s, the decision is based on long-held goals to start a business and/or the desire to stay active in their industry or community.
Eventually, most baby boomers will need to stop working as they progress into their 70s, 80s and beyond. But with such large numbers planning to continue working, thereby continuing to pay into the Social Security Fund, perhaps Social Security will be able to withstand the end of the baby boom and continue to be a safety net for future generations.