Employment, Social Security, and future retirement outcomes for single mothers

Johnson

Richard W.

Johnson, Richard W.

Author

Favreault

Melissa M.

Favreault, Melissa M.

Author

Goldwyn

Joshua H.

Goldwyn, Joshua H.

Author

text

working paper

Chestnut Hill, Mass. Center for Retirement Research at Boston College20032003monographic

Chestnut Hill, Mass.

Center for Retirement Research at Boston College

2003

monographic

Englisheng

English

eng

electronicapplication/pdfborn digital

electronic

application/pdf

born digital

Employment rates for single mothers with dependent children have risen steadily in recent years, due in part to welfare reform and expansions in the Earned Income Tax Credit. This paper examines this recent increase and analyzes the implications for future retirement security. The results show that increases in employment and earnings for single mothers during the late 1990s will translate into modestly higher Social Security benefits and better retirement outcomes when they reach later life, assuming these trends persist. Despite this improvement, however, most single mothers will continue to fare worse in retirement than other women, primarily because they generally earned low wages throughout their working lives and many lack financial support from spouses.

Richard W. Johnson, Melissa M. Favreault, and Joshua H. Goldwyn.

CRR WP2003-14

CRR WP

2003-14

http://crr.bc.edu/images/stories/Working_Papers/wp_2003-14.pdf

MChBEnglisheng

MChB

Englisheng

English

eng