September 1, 2019 • Karen DeMasters
If the Senate passes the Secure Act this fall—and most observers feel it will—the law would be a step in the right direction to helping solve the retirement savings crisis that plagues so many people, according to David Reich, president of retirement services for global insurance brokerage Hub International. But more needs to be done to help individuals save for a dignified retirement, he explained in a recent interview. The Secure Act (which stands for “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement”) overwhelmingly passed the House of Representatives in May with bipartisan support. It has a number of provisions, but one of its biggest potential impacts would be making it easier and cheaper for small businesses to work together to provide employer-sponsored retirement plans that many cannot afford on their own. “There is a much-discussed retirement savings crisis plaguing our society accompanied by a lot of finger-pointing at who or what is the cause,” Reich says. “Wherever you land, it’s hard to argue with this. As a country, we need to find ways to incentivize all employers to make retirement saving a priority at their firms. “The challenge is that people are not saving or not saving enough for retirement,” he says. Under the Secure Act, employers with fewer than 100 employees can get a tax credit for creating an employer-sponsored retirement plan. The act also removes some administrative burdens for the small employer. Sponsors of the bill hope this will incentivize small employers to create plans for employees and encourage employees to save more. “This has been a long time in coming,” Reich adds. Larger companies employ 60% of U.S. workers, and almost all offer employer-sponsored retirement plans. Within these large firms with plans, 98% of workers are covered. Sounds great, but that’s only part of the equation, because people aren’t saving enough. The average savings of participants within employer-sponsored plans is 7.6% of salary. Retirement experts say that number should be at least 10%, or as high as 15%. A recent Federal Reserve report showed a substantial number of Americans have no retirement savings. Thirteen percent of those who are over 60 years of age and 17% of the 45-to-59 age group have no financial cushion. Twenty-six percent of those ages 30 to 44 have no retirement savings, and 42% of the 18- to 29-year-old group have not started saving. Many of these non-savers are part of the 40% of American workers employed by organizations with 100 or fewer employees who do not have access to a 401(k)-type plan. First « 1 2 » Next
If the Senate passes the Secure Act this fall—and most observers feel it will—the law would be a step in the right direction to helping solve the retirement savings crisis that plagues so many people, according to David Reich, president of retirement services for global insurance brokerage Hub International.
But more needs to be done to help individuals save for a dignified retirement, he explained in a recent interview.
The Secure Act (which stands for “Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement”) overwhelmingly passed the House of Representatives in May with bipartisan support. It has a number of provisions, but one of its biggest potential impacts would be making it easier and cheaper for small businesses to work together to provide employer-sponsored retirement plans that many cannot afford on their own.
“There is a much-discussed retirement savings crisis plaguing our society accompanied by a lot of finger-pointing at who or what is the cause,” Reich says. “Wherever you land, it’s hard to argue with this. As a country, we need to find ways to incentivize all employers to make retirement saving a priority at their firms.
“The challenge is that people are not saving or not saving enough for retirement,” he says. Under the Secure Act, employers with fewer than 100 employees can get a tax credit for creating an employer-sponsored retirement plan. The act also removes some administrative burdens for the small employer. Sponsors of the bill hope this will incentivize small employers to create plans for employees and encourage employees to save more. “This has been a long time in coming,” Reich adds.
Larger companies employ 60% of U.S. workers, and almost all offer employer-sponsored retirement plans. Within these large firms with plans, 98% of workers are covered.
Sounds great, but that’s only part of the equation, because people aren’t saving enough. The average savings of participants within employer-sponsored plans is 7.6% of salary. Retirement experts say that number should be at least 10%, or as high as 15%.
A recent Federal Reserve report showed a substantial number of Americans have no retirement savings. Thirteen percent of those who are over 60 years of age and 17% of the 45-to-59 age group have no financial cushion. Twenty-six percent of those ages 30 to 44 have no retirement savings, and 42% of the 18- to 29-year-old group have not started saving.
Many of these non-savers are part of the 40% of American workers employed by organizations with 100 or fewer employees who do not have access to a 401(k)-type plan.
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