Monday, January 17, 2011

401(k) plans regaining steam

In sign of progress, many say they expect to restart match in within 12 months

By Russell Grantham

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

It’s not just jobs that have been slow to come back during the economy’s spastic recovery from the Great Recession. About half of the U.S. companies that suspended contributions to their employees’ retirement savings after 2008 haven’t restored them yet.
n a 401(k) plan, the worker voluntarily saves part of his or her pay in a tax-deferred account. The employer typically matches a portion of the worker’s contributions.

About one in five employers with 401(k) plans cut or ditched their matching contributions during the 2007-2009 financial meltdown, according to a recently released report from compensation consulting firm Towers Watson. The cuts were particularly prevalent at firms in the retail, manufacturing, media, communications and technology industries.

But, in a sign of potentially better times, most of the laggards say they expect to again start chipping in money within the next 12 months, according to Towers Watson.
full story at ajc

No comments: