In the mid-1990s, Latvia became one of the first countries in Central and Eastern Europe to undertake radical pension system reforms, introducing a three-tiered system, raising the retirement age and limiting the possibilities of early retirement, all in the name of ensuring the system’s sustainability. A decade later, up to 90% of retired people receive pensions that fall below the minimum subsistence wage level. Thus, instead of a time of well-deserved rest, retirement for the majority is a time of financial constraints and social exclusion.