Dr. Nari Rhee has served as Director of the Retirement Security Program at the UC Berkeley Labor Center since 2014. Her expertise spans a wide range of critical issues, including the retirement savings and plan coverage gap for private-sector workers, the impact of retirement plan design on retirement outcomes, Social Security, long-term care, caregiving, and older workers. She conducts evidence-based policy research at the intersection of aging, the U.S. retirement system, and the challenges facing low-income and middle-income workers in preparing for the future. In addition, she provides technical assistance to labor and community organizations on retirement benefits for low-income nontraditional workers. Dr. Rhee’s research has helped shape the national conversation on the retirement crisis and the race and gender gaps in retirement wealth, and directly informed legislation leading to the establishment of CalSavers.

Prior to her current role at UC Berkeley, Dr. Rhee served as Manager of Research at the National Institute on Retirement Security in 2012-2014. In 2010-2011, as Associate Specialist at the UC Berkeley Labor Center in 2010-2011.

Dr. Rhee holds a PhD in Geography from UC Berkeley, an MA in Urban Planning from UCLA, and a BA in Anthropology from UC Santa Cruz. She has been a member of the National Academy of Social Insurance since 2014.