Even before the pandemic, fifty million Americans – disproportionally workers with low wages, women, and workers of color – did not have access to the tools they need to build retirement savings for their future. In order to achieve retirement security for the millions of those who are facing an uncertain future after years of work, we need strong leadership from all parts of the retirement savings ecosystem.

As we begin to witness the glimmer of a post- COVID-19 world, we must confront the new financial realities of our society. The best-case scenario for many is that short- and long-term savings are at risk. It is now that we must ask what it will take to make retirement savings part of an equitable recovery.

The 5th Annual Leadership Forum on Retirement Savings is comprised of a series of public and private sessions aimed at grappling with the issues that have prevented our country from building the inclusive, adequate savings system necessary to achieve retirement security for all. The public kickoff event brought together the Chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee Richard E. Neal, CEO of Morningstar Kunal Kapoor, Managing Director and Co-President of JPMorgan Chase Institute Fiona Greig, Wisconsin State Treasurer Sarah Godlewski, Deputy Commissioner of the Office of Retirement and Disability Policy for the Social Security Administration Kilolo Kijakazi, and more. The Forum is supported by AARP, J.P.Morgan Asset Management, and Prudential.

By the public session’s end, five key takeaways emerged.

  1. It’s time to take a national approach to retirement savings solutions.
  2. Racial inequities are inseparable from retirement insecurity.
  3. This is the moment to think big.
  4. It’s never been clearer that retirement planning needs to be holistic.
  5. We should move past thinking about access in the aggregate.

Read the full article about retirement savings at The Aspen Institute.