October is National Retirement Insecurity Month. While public pensions remain one of the strongest and most reliable retirement tools, millions of Americans continue to face a frighteningly uncertain future. This year, that reality feels even more urgent.
Recognize the Escalating Retirement Crisis
The retirement crisis in America is worsening. Mass layoffs in both the public and private sectors have left many workers without steady jobs, let alone employer-sponsored retirement plans. At the same time, proposals to weaken or privatize Social Security threaten to undercut one of the most important pillars of retirement security.
The facts are sobering:
- Nearly half of U.S. households have no retirement savings at all.
- Among those who do, the median 401(k) balance is less than $30,000—far short of what’s needed to cover rising costs for healthcare, housing, and daily expenses.
- As life expectancy increases, more Americans face the risk of outliving their savings.
This growing insecurity underscores the importance of pensions more than ever.
Advocate for Public Pensions
For teachers, firefighters, nurses, and other public employees, pensions remain a crucial promise: guaranteed lifetime income after a lifetime of service. However, special interest groups continue to attack these benefits, pushing risky 401(k)-style plans that leave workers vulnerable to market volatility.
You can help: Becoming a pension advocate doesn’t require a title—it starts with caring about the retirement futures of public employees and the communities they serve. Stay informed about your state legislature, ask questions about candidates’ positions on pensions and retirement security, and share accurate information with your network. If you’re a union member, get in touch with your local leadership and ask them what they’re doing to protect your retirement security.
Push Back Against Misinformation
This year, we’ve seen growing recognition that pensions are not outdated—they are essential. Public support remains strong, with a majority of Americans saying that every worker should have access to a pension. But while support grows, so do the attacks.
Well-funded organizations, such as the Reason Foundation and other anti-pension think tanks, have been especially active in 2025, ramping up efforts to influence legislators with misleading studies and opinion pieces. These groups often frame pensions as “unsustainable” or “unfair to taxpayers,” ignoring decades of evidence that shows pensions are efficient, affordable, and vital to retirement security.
Here are some facts you can use to push back against pension opponents:
- Public pensions are efficient. Since 1991, about 60% of pension fund revenue has come from investment earnings, not taxpayers.
- Public pensions are affordable. In FY 2022, just 5.11% of state and local government spending went to pensions.
- Public pensions support the economy. In 2022, pensions contributed $1.5 trillion to the U.S. economy through investments and retiree spending.
Join Us in the Fight for Retirement Security
National Retirement Security Month is a reminder that we can—and must—do better. Every American deserves the chance to retire with dignity. For public employees, pensions are the strongest guarantee we have.
This October, join NPPC in defending pensions, supporting retirement security for all, and fighting back against policies that would leave workers vulnerable.
Want to stay up-to-date? Subscribe to NPPC News Clips for daily updates on pension news. And be sure to follow along on Facebook and Instagram this month as we share stories from public employees whose lives have been shaped by the promise of a secure retirement.
Together, we can ensure that retirement security is not just a dream for the few—but a reality for all.