Switching investments in defined contribution retirement savings arrangements

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Contribution

Report of the Investment Products for Retirement Savings Working Party: “Is there a place in the UK Defined Contribution pensions market for a guaranteed savings product?” ‐ Abstract of the London discussion

2013 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 657-675
Author(s):  
Scott Eason
Keyword(s):  
Working Party ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Publication Type ◽  
The Uk

This abstract relates to the following paper:EasonS., BarkerP., ForoughiG., HarsantJ., HunterD., JarvisS., JonesG., KnavaV., MurphyP., MurrayK., MuthulingamJ., OdoziN., PageT., WashomaK. & WebbA.Is there a place in the UK Defined Contribution pensions market for a guaranteed savings product?British Actuarial Journal, doi:10.1017/S135732171300024X

Selecting Mutual Funds for Retirement Accounts (A)

2018 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Phillip A. Braun
Keyword(s):  
Mutual Funds ◽  
Mutual Fund ◽  
First Year ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Management Turnover ◽  
Risk Return ◽  
Retirement Plan ◽  
Retirement Accounts ◽  
Northwestern University

Alice Monroe, a 30-year-old married mother of two, was an admissions officer at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University. She was just completing her first year of service at Northwestern and qualified for the university's 403(b) retirement plan. It was early October 2017, and she had until the end of the month to decide if and to what extent she would participate in Northwestern's retirement plan–that is, how much of her salary should she put into the retirement plan, and into which mutual fund or funds should she allocate her savings? The case includes background on defined contribution and benefit plans as well as mutual funds. It goes into detail about Northwestern's retirement plan, including data on the performance of 15 of the plan's core mutual funds. The case also provides each fund's strategy, Morningstar Rating and Morningstar Category, expense ratio, assets under management, turnover rate, and historical performance for the last 10 years. Using modern portfolio theory (diversification and risk-return trade-off) and with an understanding of mutual fund fees and the tax advantages of retirement savings, students will decide how much Alice should invest and in which mutual funds.

scholarly journals Good job, good pension? The influence of the workplace on saving for retirement

2018 ◽  
Vol 39 (11) ◽  
pp. 2483-2501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lynne Robertson-Rose
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Retirement Benefits ◽  
Utility Company ◽  
Proactive Approach ◽  
The United Kingdom ◽  
Income Adequacy ◽  
Embedded Case Study

AbstractMost private-sector employees in the United Kingdom (UK) are automatically enrolled into individualised defined contribution (DC) pension accounts. In a DC environment, income adequacy in retirement is highly dependent on the decisions that individuals make earlier in their lives. The ease with which they move into employment, and the pension support that they then receive from their employer, can be critical in determining outcomes. This paper discusses how employees respond to workplace pension schemes and the circumstances under which they assess the suitability of their contributions. The findings are based on an embedded case study comprising qualitative interviews with 25 employees of a large UK utility company. Participants were selected on the basis of socio-economic similarity. The research concluded that fixed-term employment negatively impacted on saving for retirement, both with respect to scheme membership and to the level of saving. Furthermore, it was found that the employment context had an influence upon retirement savings behaviour. The proactive approach of the employer in providing retirement benefits, and the trust that employees had in their employer, positively influenced membership and contribution levels. In addition to employer endorsement effects, both the encouragement of older work colleagues and workplace norms had a role to play in influencing how successfully individuals prepared for retirement.

Earnings volatility and 401(k) contributions

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 554-575 ◽  
Author(s):  
TERESA GHILARDUCCI ◽  
JOELLE SAAD-LESSLER ◽  
GAYLE REZNIK
Keyword(s):  
Longitudinal Survey ◽  
Living Standards ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Program Participation ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Social Security Administration ◽  
Earnings Volatility ◽  
Administrative Records ◽  
Reactive Behavior ◽  
Unemployment Spells

AbstractUsing longitudinal Survey of Income and Program Participation data linked to Social Security Administration administrative records from 2009 and 2012, we find negative economic shocks cause 401(k) contribution behavior to react in ways consistent with reactions to fear and past trauma. If employees participating in 401(k) plans did not experience real earnings declines or unemployment spells between 2009 and 2012, then their contribution rates would have been 5% higher and each person would have contributed US $193 more toward their defined contribution plan accounts. We conclude that previous studies may have swung too far in emphasizing inertia as a primary behavior trait explaining workers’ 401(k) plan engagement. Reactive behavior to protect living standards by reducing retirement savings is also important.

scholarly journals A model for the pension system in Mexico: diagnosis and recommendations

2014 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
pp. 76-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
JAVIER ALONSO ◽  
CARMEN HOYO ◽  
DAVID TUESTA
Keyword(s):  
Pension System ◽  
High Rate ◽  
Economic Forecast ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Projection Model ◽  
Employment History ◽  
Coverage Rates ◽  
Low Coverage

AbstractThe reform of the pension system of the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS) in 1997, limited the growing fiscal cost of the previous pay-as-you-go scheme. Sixteen years on from its creation, the Retirement Savings System (SAR) has had favourable macroeconomic effects for Mexico, as it has significantly increased financial savings and encouraged the development of local financial markets.However, the employment and pension coverage has not developed as hoped, due to the high rate of informality in the labour market. In addition, the replacement rates (RR) forecast for old-age pensions from the defined-contribution scheme will be low, due to problems exogenous to the pension system, such as low contribution rates and low contribution densities. The main objective of this study is to develop a macroeconomic and actuarial projection model to simulate the expected coverage and RR for the period 2012–2050, within the framework of a demographic and economic forecast that will allow a detailed diagnosis of the current conditions of the pension system. The results reveal the unpromising scenario that the pension system has and will continue to have in the long term, with limited improvements in coverage rates. The possibility of obtaining adequate pensions will be restricted to those who have socioeconomic conditions with a long employment history, who can thus make contributions to their individual accounts.Taking into account this baseline projection scenario, we simulate the expected effects of applying a set of proposals with the aim of tackling the main problems, such as the low coverage, low RR, and low level of participation by young people in the system.

scholarly journals Use of Advisors and Retirement Plan Performance

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 342-356
Author(s):  
Rui Yao ◽  
Weipeng Wu ◽  
Cody Mendenhall
Keyword(s):  
Portfolio Allocation ◽  
Objective Measures ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Benefit ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Retirement Plans ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Retirement Plan ◽  
Research Gap

As defined contribution (DC) plans become more popular than defined benefit (DB) plans, American workers are increasingly responsible for their retirement savings. Because retirement plan participants' portfolio allocation is constrained by the available funds in the plan, the construction of a plan's investment menu has become extremely important. No research has evaluated fund selection in retirement plans or compared plans involving an advisor with self-directed plans. To fill this research gap, this study employs cross-sectional, nationwide data that include 5,570 retirement plans with 100 or more participants in 2013, 2014 and 2015. Results show that in most cases, using advisors is not related to plan performance. Plan sponsors should require advisors to periodically evaluate the performance of plans under their management using objective measures.

Retirement Savings Adequacy in U.S. Defined Contribution Plans

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Gomes ◽  
Kenton Hoyem ◽  
Wei-Yin Hu ◽  
Enrichetta Ravina
Keyword(s):  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Defined Contribution Plans

Scrambling the Nest Egg: How Well Do Teachers Understand Their Pensions, and What Do They Think about Alternative Pension Structures?

2010 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 558-586 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael DeArmond ◽  
Dan Goldhaber
Keyword(s):  
Pension Plans ◽  
Washington State ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Defined Benefit ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Administrative Records ◽  
Defined Contribution Plans ◽  
Alternative Plan ◽  
Defined Benefit Plans ◽  
Career Teachers

In this article we focus on two questions: How well do teachers understand their current pension plans, and what do they think about alternative plan structures? The data come from administrative records and a 2006 survey of teachers in Washington State. The results suggest that Washington's teachers are fairly knowledgeable about their pensions, although new entrants and mid-career teachers appear to be less knowledgeable than veterans. As for teachers' preferences for plan structure, the survey suggests that when it comes to investing additional retirement savings, a plurality of teachers favor defined contribution plans that offer more portability and choice but also more risk than traditional defined benefit plans. Again, perhaps unsurprisingly, the findings suggest that, all else equal, teachers newer to the profession are more likely than veterans to favor a defined contribution structure.

scholarly journals An analysis of the Dutch-style pension plans proposed by UK policy-makers

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
IQBAL OWADALLY ◽  
RAHIL RAM ◽  
LUCA REGIS
Keyword(s):  
Risk Sharing ◽  
Pension Plans ◽  
Retirement Savings ◽  
Investment Strategies ◽  
Defined Contribution ◽  
Replacement Rate ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
Pension Schemes ◽  
Simulation Based ◽  
The Uk

Abstract Collective Defined Contribution (CDC) pension schemes are a variant of collective pension plans that are present in many countries and especially common in the Netherlands. CDC schemes are based on the pooled management of the retirement savings of all members, thereby incorporating inter-generational risk-sharing features. Employers are not subject to investment and longevity risks as these are transferred to plan members collectively. In this paper, we discuss policy related to the proposed introduction of CDC schemes to the UK. By means of a simulation-based study, we compare the performance of CDC schemes vis-à-vis typical Defined Contribution schemes under different investment strategies. We find that CDC schemes may provide retirees with a higher income replacement rate on average, together with less uncertainty.

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