WHAT THE DATA SAY: Only 13% of Americans know correct full retirement age

By: Ray Day

CONTACT:

Ray Day
ray.day@stagwellglobal.com 

We wanted to share our latest consumer and business insights, based on research from Stagwell. Among the highlights of our weekly consumer sentiment tracking (fielded Aug. 18-20):

WEEKLY WORRIES ABOUT ECONOMY MIXED

Today, 85% of Americans are concerned about the economy and inflation – down 2 points from last week and higher than December’s 82% rate.

• 79% worry about a potential U.S. recession (down 1 point)
• 71% about affording living expenses (up 1 point)
• 75% about political divisiveness (up 1 point)
• 82% about U.S. crime rates (down 1 point)
• 65% about the War on Ukraine (down 5 points)
• 59% about a new COVID-19 variant (up 7 points)
• 54% about losing their jobs (up 6 points)

60-69 IS ‘PERFECT’ RETIREMENT AGE

Employers say the “perfect” retirement age is now between 60 and 69, and companies are taking knowledge transfer more seriously than ever, according to our Harris Poll survey with Express Employment Professionals.

• U.S. employers are facing a compounded crisis due to the current labor shortage and losing critical skills that veteran workers possess.
• 81% of American hiring managers say employees have retired from their companies in the past two years.
• 33% of these employees have retired between 60 and 64 years old, and 33% between 65 and 69 years old.
• 26% of hiring managers believe employees should retire between 60 and 64, and 24% believe the correct age is between 65 and 69.
• 84% say it’s a big loss when older employees retire without passing on their years of knowledge to younger employees.
• 47% of employees are experiencing a failure of knowledge transfer, leaving employees to learn how to do a job on their own.

ONLY 13% KNOW CORRECT AGE FOR SOCIAL SECURITY BENEFITS

Today, 75% of adults age 50+ worry Social Security will run out of funding in their lifetime, up from 66% in 2014. Our Harris Poll survey with the Nationwide Retirement Institute also found:

• 21% of adults age 50+ say they have no source of retirement income in addition to Social Security, up from 13% in 2014.
• 10 years ago, 48% of Americans had a pension in addition to Social Security, compared with 31% in 2023.
• The picture is even dimmer for young people: 45% of Gen Z and 39% of Millennials believe they will not have any Social Security benefits when they are eligible to collect.
• In fact, 76% of Gen Z and 76% of Millennials anticipate they will need to continue working in retirement because Social Security will not pay enough.
• Only 13% of American adults correctly guess the full retirement age for Social Security based on their year of birth: 50% incorrectly stated a lower age, 4% incorrectly stated a higher age, and 33% said they do not know.
• Overall, Americans guess the full retirement age is 60 years, Gen Z guesses 54, and Millennials guess 55. (The correct age is 66 or 67, depending on the year a person is born.)

POLITICAL CRISES SLOW CORPORATE REPUTATION RECOVERY

Companies caught in the crosshairs of a politically focused crisis are finding it harder and slower to recover from reputational harm, according to Stagwell’s latest risk and reputation research.

• Historically, companies like Boeing, VW and Chipotle that suffered a product-led crisis saw reputation recovery in about two years – and full recovery within three to five years.
• Today, companies like Disney caught in a politically focused crisis are seeing reputation in sustained decline – with deep partisan divisions among consumers. Disney’s political polarization index between Republicans and Democrats, for example, went from 2.6 in 2019 to 19.3 this year.
• With the 2024 election season in full swing, the business and reputation environment will become even tougher – especially for communicators and marketers.
• Trust is under pressure: 59% of Americans say current economic conditions are being misrepresented due to the upcoming election cycle, and 53% say the news media report on the economy inaccurately.
• Even the words companies use to communicate are being scrutinized: 58% of Americans believe the term “ESG” divides people more than it brings them together. “Sustainability” is less polarizing – with 27% believing the term has the potential to divide.
• To help businesses navigate the road ahead, Stagwell’s Risk and Reputation Unit is conducting off-the-record, in-person briefings in New York, Washington, D.C. and Chicago next month for C-suite executives seeking intelligence about business risks heading into the 2024 election. To join one of the forums, send us an e-mail.

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