Retirement benefits

While they have become a standard option in most employer-sponsored retirement programs, how much do participants really know about glide paths and real TDF performance?

With strategic federal-level assistance for retirement still lagging, states including Illinois, California and Oregon have stepped in with their own automatic IRA plans to boost employee savings.

The public has until July 21 to submit comments on the proposal that would expand the fiduciary standard to thousands of brokers and advisers who provide retirement investment advice.

There are a few factors holding plan sponsors back from offering many of the tools that have been shown to increase retirement plan participation and outcomes.

Market timing and frequent trades within 401(k) plan mutual funds seem to be a thing of the past, according to the Government Accountability Office.

As participants age and their retirement investment requirements become less easily satisfied by cookie-cutter target date funds, the use of managed accounts as qualified default investment alternatives in 401(k) plans may grow.

When employers are talking to employees about retirement readiness, Social Security benefits should figure into the conversation, particularly for those nearing retirement.

Accounting for the needs of multiple generations in a financial wellness program can seem overwhelming.

Aiming to simplify a process akin to “herding cats,” with no unity or way to compare offerings, exchange helps plan sponsors with their fiduciary responsibility.

Many employees may not be aware they have the option of a Roth 401(k), and those who do often don't have any idea which to pick -- the traditional 401(k) or the Roth 401(k).

Upfront information, auto features and tailoring communication and education specific to younger employees can help boost participation.

Commentary: As the boomer generation moves further into traditional retirement years, evolving employee expectations are altering the benefits landscape more significantly than at any other time in recent history.

Even when plan fiduciaries hire outside service providers to manage the 401(k) plan, they still maintain fiduciary responsibility for certain functions.

Participation in employer-sponsored 401(k) plans has slowly crept up over the past decade, in large part because of actions taken by plan sponsors.

Commentary: If the objective of the Chamber of Commerce’s study on the DOL’s proposed fiduciary rules was to scare small business owners, clearly it succeeded. But it certainly failed on another level.

Small businesses will pay a big price if the Department of Labor’s proposed changes to the fiduciary rules go into effect, says the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.

Generalists and small-market plan sponsors are likely to be the most negatively affected, according to a retirement conference panel.

Expanding the electronic options for delivering required financial information to 401(k) plan participants could benefit both employers and employees, but Department of Labor and IRS rules often conflict about when employers can use electronic communication for their retirement plans.

Retirement relates to all other parts of the financial pie, and that’s the conversation advisers should be having with clients.

While employers may recognize that the amount of time employees will spend in retirement is growing, people around the world fail to reflect this trend in their long-term financial planning.