Retirement

The Department of Labor Tuesday unveiled its much-anticipated rule proposal extending a fiduciary standard to thousands of brokers and advisers providing investment advice to clients on retirement accounts – but details on enforcement were still forthcoming.

Anyone who works with people knows the positive effect offering high-quality employee benefits can have on a workforce. They attract the best potential candidates for new jobs and foster a sense of loyalty and support among current staff, in addition to other things.

Employees and employers need to make sure their 401(k), 403(b) and 457 plan assets are in the right allocations for where they are in life, and that means revisiting those allocations on a regular basis.

Despite the best efforts of workplace-sponsored retirement plans and even the relatively positive status of Social Security, many baby boomers say they have lost confidence in their ability to live comfortably in retirement.

A plan’s average account balance is a key metric used by recordkeepers and other service providers to evaluate its health. Increasing it can give sponsors the leverage they need to negotiate lower fees.

Committees and plan sponsors alike have discussed ways to improve their investment menus over the last several years as a way to help drive successful retirement outcomes for employees. Regulatory changes, market instability and large numbers of investment options have led plan sponsors to devote more attention to their plans’ investment menus. What steps can committees take to help the problem that has plagued so many participants over the years? …

Employees say nothing in their total rewards package stands out, and this perceived lack of differentiation could be damaging employers’ attraction and retention efforts.

The Affordable Care Act has had one unintended consequence for small businesses. It has prompted employers to beef up their retirement benefits as a way to attract and retain good employees.

Employers around the world are pushing free transparency and seeking better investment outcomes for their workers, which is leading to a greater availability of low-cost investment options in employer-sponsored plans.

Top- rated states and localities have shortchanged payments to retirement plans as rallying stocks ease the funding pressure while services such as schools and crumbling infrastructure scream for resources.