Despite decades of retirement plan enrollment meetings, many employees fail to fully engage in their employer-sponsored retirement plans. Under the framework of the Transtheoretical Model (TTM) of Behavior Change, this study examines the effectiveness of a financial psychology intervention designed to increase engagement in employer-sponsored…

Public pension systems in many U.S. states face large funding short-falls, and policymakers have considered moving toward defined contribution (DC) pension structures in the interest of reducing the likelihood of future shortfalls. Concerns exist, however, that such changes might increase levels of employee turnover. The empirical evidence on the…

The relationship between employer and employee has changed significantly over the past 40 years. One of the greatest changes in this relationship is in the nature of employee retirement. While pension reform at public and private colleges has helped ensure institutional financial viability, retirement security for employees has declined. With the…

Currently, higher education is being roiled by class-action lawsuits filed against high-profile institutions, including MIT, Yale and New York University, over management of their retirement plans. As the lawyers are deployed and the billable hours accrue, it is timely to examine how those who have responsibility for retirement plan…

We study the effect of incorporating heterogeneity into default rules by examining the choice between retirement plans at a firm that transitioned from a defined benefit (DB) to a defined contribution (DC) plan. The default plan for existing employees varied discontinuously depending on their age. Employing regression discontinuity techniques,…

Purpose: This study examines sex differences among Baby Boom workers in the likelihood of coverage by an employer-provided retirement plan. Design and Methods: This study used a sample of Baby Boom workers drawn from the 2009 Current Population Survey. Independent variables were selected to replicate as closely as possible those in two 1995…

As firms switch from defined-benefit plans to defined-contribution plans, employees bear more responsibility for making decisions about how much to save. The employees who fail to join the plan or who participate at a very low level appear to be saving at less than the predicted life cycle savings rates. Behavioral explanations for this behavior…

The American Council on Education's 2-year process of investigation, study, and selection that resulted in the council's movement from TIAA/CREF as its only available retirement plan, to a total of 15 retirement options offered by two insured annuity companies and two mutual fund companies is described. (MLW)

Although the rules for public-employee pension funds vary, they operate under the same guidelines. Throughout their careers, teachers and other state and local employees contribute portions of their salaries into retirement funds managed by states and municipalities. In almost all cases, the employers also pitch in a percentage of the employees'…

Supports seniority as a just principle for governing personnel decisions, under fair hiring and valid competence assessment. Argues that seniority reduces likelihood that senior citizens will be second-class citizens in workplace, that seniority rights protect older workers against age discrimination, and that seniority rights protect and increase…

Examines the range of knowledge about retirement-related issues that exists among various employee groups within a particular organization. Finds that education was a strong predictor in determining employees' knowledge. Discusses implications for future research regarding the development of materials designed to educate employees about…

Presents four papers discussing issues in the regulation of employer pensions, trends in pension coverage and benefit receipt, restrictive pension provisions and older workers, and indexing retirement benefits. (JAC)

Raising the age of mandatory retirement will retard the rate of promotional prospects only slightly in the economy. Larger delays will occur for top positions. Individual firms may experience greater delays depending on their rate of growth, previous retirement age, and willingness of older workers to remain on the job. (Author)