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December 2008
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Many employers offering financial education programs for their employees
43% of Employers Offer Financial Education Programs for Their Employees
New Survey Examines the Employee Benefits Offered in Four Employment Sectors
Brookfield, Wisconsin November 26, 2008 -- A recent survey of employers conducted by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans found that 43 percent of U.S. respondents offer financial education/literacy programs for their workers.
The current financial crisis has affected the way Americans are spending their money and how they are saving for the future. If the situation persists through 2009, we may see the percentage of employers offering financial education programs increase as they try to help their employees deal with the crisis.
With the economy affecting retirement plans, employees are taking a greater interest in their retirement future. “The current financial crisis has affected the way Americans are spending their money and how they are saving for the future,” says Julie Stich, Senior Information/Research Specialist with the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans. “If the situation persists through 2009, we may see the percentage of employers offering financial education programs increase as they try to help their employees deal with the crisis.”
“Employees who participate in a defined contribution plan may view the impact of the financial crisis differently from those who have a defined benefit pension plan. People with 401(k) plans feel the impact of the stock market decline each time they check their account balance. On the other hand, someone who participates in a defined benefit pension plan is largely sheltered from the effect of the financial crisis on retirement assets. It’s the employers who bear the market risk.”
Key U.S. Pension/Retirement Findings
The survey breaks down which retirement plans are most likely to be offered in each employment sector. As expected, those in the corporate sector are most likely to offer a defined contribution (DC) plan such as a 401(k) plan, while those in the multiemployer and public employer sectors are most likely to offer a defined benefit (DB) plan.
To increase employee participation in DC plans and to assist participants with the
These findings and others concerning employee benefits are reported in the survey titled Employee Benefits Survey: U.S. and Canada: 2009. The report contains responses from 972 respondents representing employers and benefit plans in the U.S. and Canada. Survey results are presented for four employment sectors: corporations, public employers, multiemployer benefit plans and professional service firms serving the employee benefits industry.
The survey looked at retirement plan offerings, health care benefits and other miscellaneous benefits.
• Nearly two in five corporations, 40 percent, offer a high-deductible health plan (HDHP). The most popular offering is a HDHP with a health savings account (HSA).
• Corporations are most likely to offer a health flexible spending account (FSA). Nine in ten (87 percent) corporate respondents offer a FSA, followed by 65 percent of public employers, 58 percent of professional service firms and just 9 percent of multiemployer plans.
Other popular benefits offered by respondents in general include mental health benefits (71 percent), vision care (64 percent), chiropractic coverage (61 percent) and orthodontia benefits (59 percent).
Other Key U.S. Benefits Findings
• More than half of corporations (58 percent) and professional service firms (54 percent) offer at least ten paid holidays per year. A majority of public sector employers (53 percent) offer 12 or more days.
• Slightly more than half, 57 percent, of corporations and 55 percent of public employers offer some form of adoption benefits to their employees. Public sector employees are the most likely to offer paid leave as an adoption benefit.
• Public employers are the most likely to offer flexible work hours at 55 percent. They are followed by professional service firms (54 percent) and corporations (47 percent).
Over half of corporations, 63 percent, provide special perks to executives; most popular are a company car or allowance, supplemental executive retirement plans/nonqualified deferred compensation plans, equity compensation and executive physical examinations.
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