Retirees Are Being RUINED – Biden’s Doing?
(TheRedWire.com) – Signs of inflation appeared on the radar as the federal government and some states began to roll back some pandemic restrictions in March and April 2021. Yet, President Joe Biden and Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said it was temporary and transitory. Inflation crept up for several reasons, including rising wages to entice people back to work. Higher pay also meant businesses had to raise prices to afford the increases.
As inflation roars beyond 8%, jobs continue to pay much better than they did pre-pandemic, and as the pandemic wanes, retired Americans are re-entering the workforce. Yet, are they returning to the workforce by choice or because Joe Biden’s economy has left them without one?
Retired Americans Re-Enter the Workforce
In March, employment match-making company Indeed said 3.2% of those who retired in 2021 have re-entered the workforce. According to an opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal, that’s not necessarily good. Poor economic policies during the pandemic resulted in numerous problems contributing to the fast-paced rise of inflation now gripping the country. Market sectors from gasoline to groceries and utility bills are rising quickly. The price increases have a tremendous impact on senior citizens who live on fixed incomes.
Inflation makes people who live on fixed incomes poorer. To compensate for the reduction in purchasing power, some people in retirement are going back to work as a result. Still, economists say some people retired before they were ready because of the pandemic. As the pandemic recedes and with many seniors vaccinated and boosted, they want to rebuild their nest eggs.
Economists say retirees returning to the job market is good for the economy because it improves GDP and keeps people out of poverty, but is that the whole story?
Why Are Retirees Re-Entering Workforce? Want or Need?
Harvard economist Jason Furman wrote in the Wall Street Journal that year-on-year inflation in April increased by 8.5%. Yet, wages only increased only 5.6%. Here’s the challenge for those on a fixed income: As inflation climbs each month, it eats incrementally more into a fixed income, making it impossible for some retirees to keep up financially with the rising prices.
Experts and economists say inflation is here to stay and could continue to rise well over another 3.5% for several years. Obama-era economist Steven Rattner warned Congress and President Biden that passage of the American Rescue Act in March 202 along partisan lines could spark the crisis we are in today.
So, you decide if the problem is Biden’s doing or not.
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