Should 401k advisors be banging HSA and annuity (or rather “guaranteed income”) options harder? Yes, if we’re to listen to employer concerns about their employees’ retirement prospects.
Nearly half are only somewhat confident in their employees’ retirement futures and one in five say they are not at all confident, according to a new TIAA survey of plan sponsors.
Nine in 10 cited rising health care costs and seven in 10 cited outliving retirement savings as their biggest concerns, yet few have added retirement plan features that can help.
Not surprisingly, employers also worry that many of their employees are not saving enough or not participating in a retirement plan.
While employers worry about their employees’ retirement futures, budget constraints and attracting and retaining talent are also significant concerns in managing their workforce, according to the survey.
“While plan sponsors face a number of workforce challenges, employees outliving their retirement savings is a top concern,” Doug Chittenden, executive vice president and president of Institutional Retirement at TIAA, said in a statement. “Creating a diversified retirement benefits menu that includes a lifetime income option will not only help ensure employees have enough money to cover basic expenses in retirement, it can also help alleviate the stress of rising health care costs.”
Giving employees access to retirement investments that guarantee lifetime income is something both employers and employees say they want.
According to the survey, more than half (51 percent) of all employers think their employees would prefer receiving $2,700 a month for life rather than a $500,000 lump sum at retirement; this echoes an earlier TIAA study, in which 62 percent of employees said they would make the same choice.
And while employees voice a strong interest in lifetime income options, few have access through their employer retirement savings plans.
According to the survey:
- Only 12 percent of employers offer annuities as retirement income options for retirement savings.
- Fifty-seven percent of employers expect employees to generate retirement income through systematic and lump sum withdrawals—distribution options that aren’t guaranteed.
- Twenty-seven percent said they don’t know how their employees will generate income.
- Only 14 percent expect their employees to generate income from an in-plan annuity.
With more than 20 years serving financial markets, John Sullivan is the former editor-in-chief of Investment Advisor magazine and retirement editor of ThinkAdvisor.com. Sullivan is also the former editor of Boomer Market Advisor and Bank Advisor magazines, and has a background in the insurance and investment industries in addition to his journalism roots.
