EBRI/ICI Data Show Workers Contribute More to 401(k)s When Employers Chip In

Average 401(k) investors are contributing 6.8% of their before-tax salaries to retirement accounts, according the latest data provided by an ongoing joint research project conducted by two well-known industry groups.

The Employee Benefits Research Assn. and the Investment Company Institute will release reports this month showing that nearly all of the money that workers contribute to their 401(k) plans is on a pre-tax basis. In addition, the data show that participants are likely to contribute more to their plans when they are allowed to take out loans against their accounts.

The ICI and EBRI also found that total contributions increase when employers contribute matching funds to accounts. The data show that workers kick an average of 10% of their salaries into 401(k) plans when employers match a portion of those contributions, while compared with 7.4% in plans where employers contribute nothing.

The results will be published this month in publications from both organizations.

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Money Management Executive
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