A slideshow of individuals who have been affected by the retirement income problem in the United States.

1. Workers and Retirees Speak

4. My income from Social Security is not enough to live on. It was to my advantage to be in the Federal Employee Retirement System most of my career. My daughter has followed me as a civil servant, working for the federal government throughout her life. She started after 1985, so she has always been in the Thrift Savings Plan. She does not foresee the retirement comfort that I enjoy. I’m satisfied with my 15 years in retirement. -- Russell P., 79, McKeesport, PA, retired federal civil servant

7. For most of my life, I ran a one-person architect shop. Then, what happened in 1993-1994 nearly killed me. My investments fell. The housing industry went into a slump. My daughters were starting college, and my mother was in a nursing home. These extra expenses wiped out most of my savings. Since then I’ve been trying to rebuild my retirement savings. The current downturn comes at exactly the wrong time. I gave up my own business and went to work for a firm. I will keep working as long as I can. -- Ed A., 69, Fairfax, VA, architect

9. Thanks to Robert England Beth Myers and Anna Oman, SEIU Local 520 Trimica Gartrell and David Sachs, SEIU Pamela Tainter-Causey, NCPSSM Khanh Weinberg, SEIU Local 521

10. www.retirement-usa.org