Skip to main content
Home
  • About us
    • Our company
    • Our strategy
    • Our purpose
      • Our purpose
      • Our brands
      • Community investments
    • Governance
      • Governance structure
      • Board of Directors
      • Executive Committee
      • Governance documents
    • Compliance
      • Group Compliance
      • Insider Dealing
      • Code of Conduct
      • Speaking up
      • Workplace harassment prevention
      • Financial Economic Crime
      • Know your customer
      • Compliance documentation
  • Investors
    • Annual reports
    • Financial results
    • Presentations
    • Shareholder meetings
      • Annual General Meeting
      • Extraordinary General Meeting
    • Financial calendar
    • Dividend
      • Latest
      • Dividend history
      • Dividend policy
    • Share buybacks
    • Debt and ratings
      • Guiding principles
      • Debt programs
      • Senior notes
      • Capital securities
      • Fixing Schedule Perpetuals
      • Subordinated notes
      • Ratings
    • Investor information
      • Contact investor relations
      • Major shareholders
      • Retail US shareholders
      • Financial and shareholder FAQs
      • Share price tool
      • Financial calendar
      • Analysts
  • Media
    • All news
    • Contact media relations
    • Media kit
  • Sustainability
    • Our priorities
      • Climate change
      • Inclusion and diversity
    • Our approach
    • Our commitments
    • Our ratings
    • Our reports and policies
    • Business conduct
      • Human rights
      • Responsible investment
      • Responsible tax
      • Responsible procurement
      • Government and policy affairs
  • Careers
    • Vacancies
      • Search
    • Why Aegon
    • Inclusion & Diversity
    • Career development
    • Graduates and interns
  • Aegon country websites

    Select another Aegon website from the list of links below.
    • country flag
      Transamerica (USA)
    • country flag
      Aegon Spain
    • country flag
      Mongeral Aegon (Brazil)
    • country flag
      Aegon Asset Management
    • country flag
      Aegon in China
    • country flag
      Aegon United Kingdom

Four generations of US workers save for retirement, despite challenges

August 25, 2021, 7:00 CEST
3 minutes

Breadcrumb

  1. All News

Generation Z, Millennials, Generation X, and Baby Boomers share at least one common goal in the US. A new study involving the four groups finds a large majority of employed workers are saving for retirement, although almost half expect to work past age 65 or do not plan to retire.

content banner generations

These are some of the findings of Living in the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Health, Finances, and Retirement Prospects of Four Generations, a report published by nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies® (TCRS) in collaboration with Transamerica Institute®.

Part of TCRS' 21st Annual Retirement Survey of Workers, the report examines the retirement outlook of Generation Z, Millennials, Generation X, and Baby Boomers. The findings are based on a survey of employed workers conducted in late 2020 and contains recommendations for workers, employers, and policymakers to improve retirement security.

 

“Workers are weathering a public health crisis and contending with fears about the virus and vaccinations, concerns for family and friends, employment-related worries, and financial setbacks.”

Catherine Collinson, CEO and president of the Transamerica Institute and TCRS

 

The survey findings illustrate the experiences of workers across generations that can impact their health, financial well-being, and ability to save and invest for retirement:

Concerns about comfortable retirement

 

“Given the magnitude of challenges workers have faced during the pandemic, it is truly remarkable that they have maintained focus on their future retirement. However, before the pandemic and today, many workers continue to be at risk of not achieving a financially secure retirement.”

Catherine Collinson

 

Collinson says that given the magnitude of challenges, it is remarkable that US workers have maintained focus on their future retirement. The survey finds that 82 percent of workers are saving for retirement through employer-sponsored plans and/or outside the workplace.

While the majority of workers are actively working to build up retirement savings, only 24 percent overall are "very” confident that they will be able to fully retire with a comfortable lifestyle. Millennials (30 percent) are more likely to be "very" confident than Baby Boomers (21 percent), Generation X (19 percent) and Generation Z (16 percent). Sixteen percent of workers across generations indicate their retirement confidence has declined as a result of the pandemic. 

Steps to improve retirement security

The pandemic has exposed both weaknesses and revealed opportunities for improving retirement security. Collinson says that a concerted effort is needed among workers, employers, and policymakers, with additional steps open to each of these stakeholders, including:

"Workers' ability to achieve a secure retirement ultimately depends on access to meaningful employment throughout their lives, the availability of retirement, and health and welfare benefits, and the preservation of safety nets such as Social Security and Medicare," Collinson says. "As we emerge from the pandemic, we have an unprecedented opportunity to strengthen the fabric of our retirement system — including how we live, work, retire, and age with dignity."

Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies®

Website

Go to the report

  • Download

Contact

  • Media relations
  • Investor relations
  • About us
    • Our company
    • Our strategy
    • Our purpose
    • Contact Aegon
  • Investors
    • Annual reports
    • Financial results
    • Presentations
    • Investor information
  • Media
    • All news
    • Media relations
    • Media kit
    • Newsletter sign up
  • Sustainability
    • Our approach
    • Our priorities
    • Business conduct
  • Careers
    • Search vacancies
    • Why Aegon
    • Career development
Site logo
  • Privacy statement
  • Cookie statement
  • Accessibility
  • Disclaimer
Aegon ©2025