Wishful Thinking or Within Reach? Three Generations Prepare for "Retirement"

Today’s workers are expecting to live long lives and, in doing so, they are disrupting retirement as we once knew it. Many are envisioning retirement as a new chapter in life that involves continued work but with more free time to pursue personal interests. The big question: Is their vision wishful thinking or within their reach?

Wishful Thinking or Within Reach? Three Generations Prepare for "Retirement" is a research report based on findings from the 18th Annual Transamerica Retirement Survey. It illustrates that workers across generations including Millennials, Generation X, and Baby Boomers share a compelling vision of retirement, yet many still have major fears and concerns. Fifty-seven percent of Generation X and 55% of Baby Boomers cite outliving their savings and investments as one of their greatest retirement fears. Forty-seven percent of Millennials fear that they will be unable to meet the basic financial needs of their family when they retire. Seventy-six percent of all workers are concerned that Social Security will not be there for them when they are ready to retire.

The report is based on a survey of 6,300 workers of for-profit companies conducted in 2017.