"With urgency and humanity, Katherine Newman paints a dire picture of retirement in communities across the United States, and challenges us to fix it. This book is a wake-up call for this country, and a clarion call for all of us to take action." --Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation "With great skill and compelling evidence, Katherine Newman explains why most of the boomer generation doesn't have enough money to retire on while CEOs and others at the top are socking away a fortune. And she offers some practical solutions. Thoughtful, beautifully written, and urgent." --Robert Reich, former U.S. Secretary of Labor and author of The Common Good "Newman combines panoramic thinking about America with the most precise details about towns and companies.

She shows us a country disregarding the needs of many of its citizens. As one of her subjects puts it, 'I can't go back to work. If I do, I'll end up dead.' After reading this book, you will never be able to unsee this growing social tragedy." --Alissa Quart, author of Squeezed "Newman's careful account of lost pensions blows past illusions that mainstream suggestions for fixing the retirement crisis - nudging people to save more and work for longer - have any bearing in reality. Vivid interviews with all types of workers point to swift federal action to expand Social Security, restore lost pensions, and provide retirement accounts for all Americans." --Teresa Ghilarducci, coauthor of Rescuing Retirement "Katherine Newman tells searing stories of retirement insecurity, and makes clear why more than three-quarters of Americans fear retirement more than death. Happily, she also proposes practical solutions.

Thanks to Newman's meticulous research and compelling recommendations, we can make this a better country for our seniors and our families." --Kathleen Kennedy Townsend, director of retirement security at the Economic Policy Institute "This book is urgently needed to awake citizens of all generations to the cruel consequences of inequality ravaging our already fragile social contract. And it offers wise and feasible reform ideas. America can do better; its workers deserve better." --Katrina vanden Heuvel, publisher of The Nation " Downhill from Here describes the devastating impact on the lives of people when pensions fail, and sees real limits in asking those with low wages to save on their own. This book clearly shows how our retirement system, which works fine for some, fails for far too many." --Alicia Munnell, director of the Center for Retirement Research and coauthor of Falling Short "This well-written and carefully researched book is just what is needed to spur an urgent debate on how to fix the long-overlooked shortcomings of our nation's retirement programs." --Karen Ferguson, director of the Pension Rights Center.