This article examines how women's increased labor force participation, increased earnings, and reduced marriage rates affect Social Security replacement rates over time. Based on data from the Health and Retirement Study and Modeling Income in the Near Term, our estimates show that Social...

This paper seeks to determine the impact of the changing lives of women – increased labor force participation/earnings and reduced marriage rates – on Social Security replacement rates. First, our estimates, based on the Health and Retirement Study and Modeling Income in the Near Term, show...

While dramatic increases in women’s labor supply and earnings have led to a substantial decline in the fraction of women eligible for spouse benefits at retirement, most wives still receive a survivor benefit, as wives still typically have lower earnings than their husbands and live longer....

When to claim Social Security is one of the most important decisions Americans face when approaching retirement. Recently, several unconventional claiming strategies have come to light – “Free Loan,” “Claim and Suspend,” and “Claim Now, Claim More Later” – that have the potential...

The economic status of older Americans has improved tremendously during the last 50 years. Today the old-age poverty rate is about one third of its mid-20th century level, and poverty among the elderly is roughly the same as that among the non-elderly. Poverty rates for older non-married women,...

Using 1977-2011 data from the Current Population Survey, this paper investigates the often-repeated claim that delayed retirement by baby boomers will result in higher unemployment among the young, a claim which has been garnering increased attention from the media during the Great Recession. It...