Nuanced Inequalities: The role of status inconsistency on retirement savings

• In Event: Aging and the Life Course Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): 11: Employment, Job Quality, and Retirement

Abstract

The influence of income on retirement savings are well-documented. However, occupations are stratified on multiple dimensions based on pay and social prestige. Building on status inconsistency and rational choice theories, I analyze whether the intersection of pay and prestige – especially for those whose occupations rank highly on one dimension and poorly on another – influences retirement savings beyond income alone. Using the NLSY-79, I deploy linear regression to investigate the relationship between status consistency and retirement savings. Additionally, I disaggregate these findings to examine the direction of status inconsistency (high pay/low prestige and low pay/high prestige) on retirement savings. Preliminary results indicate modest but meaningful effects: status-inconsistent workers hold about $9,827 less in retirement savings relative to status-consistent peers, with the largest penalty for high-prestige/low-pay positions. The findings suggest that social status, alongside earnings shape financial wellbeing upon retirement, highlighting the need to consider multi-dimensional occupational inequality in retirement research.

Author

• Kristen Tzoc, Hood College