A study by Retirement Made Simpler, a coalition formed by the AARP, the
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and the Retirement Security
Project (RSP), found strong employee approval of automatic enrollment in
employer-sponsored retirement plans.
Employees surveyed were nearly unanimous in their support of
being automatically enrolled—98% were happy their employer offered the
savings vehicle. Most respondents felt the programs made saving for
retirement easier (95%), and 85% thought it helped them start saving
for retirement earlier than they originally planned.
Of those automatically enrolled, only 7% opted out of the plan.
According to RSP, companies using automatic 401(k)s typically see participation rates between 85% and 95%, in addition to increased participation among young, minority and lower-income workers.
Source: Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, www.finra.org .
