Social Security's lifetime income replacement formulas probably were developed a long time ago. Most likely, the original assumptions about employer pension availability and available discretionary income for savings that were used to determine these levels no longer are valid. Both of these factors have declined substantially since the time they were established.
Accordingly, the likelihood is that, in the future, higher income workers will be less able to retire, less able to adjust to the change in lifestyle, than lower income workers because Social Security's income replacement formulas have failed to recognize the changing reality of decreased pension availability and decreased discretionary income for saving.
