This dude didn't start working at mcdonalds until 2009 - 15 years ago. They would have been 67 years old, already retirement age. They didn't work retail prior whatsoever, so this isn't a story about how retail pays like garbage (it does.)

They worked as an assistant to a handyman from 1999-2009. Before that they worked as a radiation monitor at a nevada national security test site from 1964-1999.

Today radiation monitors make ~60k/year. I'm guessing in the past they were paid more than this proporitonally. Why couldn't they save up money? It's not like nevada is very HCOL. It's not like they were making minimum wage flipping burgers.

For the record, the nevada national security sites mention a pension, so during his 30 years working there he should have gotten one, no? https://nnss.gov/careers/msts-benefits/