From his spot at the helm of the world’s largest money manager, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink says it is time to “rethink” retirement.
In the 2024 Annual Chairman Letter to Investors released Tuesday, Fink said the “retirement crisis” is getting serious enough to evoke a national relief effort commensurate with that which addressed the 2008 mortgage crisis.
“America needs an organized, high-level effort to ensure that future generations can live out their final years with dignity,” Fink wrote.
He said helping workers invest in personal retirement could be a key to the solution. But he also called for opening the conversation on a classically hot button issue: retirement age.
What to know about 2024 Social SecurityRetirees set to earn up to $4,873 starting January
Longer life expectancy puts strain on Social Security
Social Security is “the most successful anti-poverty program in our country’s history,” according to the SSA. President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act into law in 1935 as a retirement program for workers. It was part of the historic New Deal, and the first lump-sum payments were made in 1937.
Payments for workers’ survivors were added by Congress in 1939 and regular monthly checks started in 1940. Disability benefits were added in 1956.
Retirees can start collecting their payments between ages 62-70., according to the SSA. Medicare benefits kick in at age 65.
It works in a “pay as you go” system, where today’s workers fork over a portion of…
