Follow Us
© 2026 Arizent. All rights reserved.
New research by Towers Watson shows that defined benefit plans achieved better rates of return than defined contribution plans in 2008 by the widest margin since the early 2000s. However, in 2009, DC plans outperformed DB plans.
By analyzing financial data filed to the Department of Labor, analysts found that DB plans had median investment returns of -23.44% in 2008, while DC plans had median returns of -26.12%. This means that DB plans outperformed DC plans by roughly 2.7 percentage points.
For reprint and licensing requests for this article, click here.
A wide range of employers are expressing a greater desire to measure risk, achieve more predictable retirement benefit costs, and retain top talent.
Providing working parents with time and resources to care for their children during times of illness offers returns in the forms of productivity and retention.
Cash-balance plans lead the way in groundswell of support for offering a more meaningful approach to generating retirement income for cash-strapped workers.
If wealth management clients have children who are recent college graduates, pointing them in the right direction on their first 401(k)s helps build strong connections with two generations.
The Department of Labor issued a safe harbor rule protecting benefit leaders as they navigate the added risk to retirement planning.
