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Employee Benefits Survey
EBS EBS Program Links

Defined benefit retirement plans: Open, soft and hard frozen plans

Table 5. Defined benefit retirement plans: Open, soft and hard freeze plans, private
industry workers,  National Compensation Survey, March 2015

(All workers participating in defined benefit plans = 100 percent)

Characteristics

Open plans1

Soft freeze2

Hard freeze3

All
participants
still accruing
benefits

Some
participants
still accruing
benefits

All workers

63

24

2

11

Worker characteristics

        

Management, professional, and related

58

28

3

12

    Management, business, and financial

58

25

3

15

    Professional and related

57

29

3

10

Service

80

13

–

–

    Protective service

68

–

–

–

Sales and office

59

23

3

16

    Sales and related

57

23

4

16

    Office and administrative support

59

23

2

16

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

73

21

–

–

    Construction, extraction, farming, fishing, and
     forestry

95

4

–

–

    Installation, maintenance, and repair

51

39

–

–

Production, transportation, and material moving

65

24

2

9

    Production

53

31

–

–

    Transportation and material moving

76

17

2

5

Full time

62

24

3

11

Part time

74

21

–

–

Union

78

19

–

–

Nonunion

54

27

4

16

Average wage within the following categories:4

        

    Lowest 25 percent

70

22

1

8

        Lowest 10 percent

78

19

–

–

    Second 25 percent

66

17

2

14

    Third 25 percent

65

22

2

11

    Highest 25 percent

60

28

3

10

        Highest 10 percent

56

29

3

12

Establishment characteristics

        

Goods-producing industries

61

27

3

10

    Construction

96

–

–

–

    Manufacturing

48

35

4

14

Service-providing industries

64

23

2

11

    Trade, transportation, and utilities

71

24

–

–

        Wholesale trade

68

23

–

–

        Retail trade

66

28

–

–

        Transportation and warehousing

78

19

–

–

        Utilities

67

30

–

–

    Information

–

57

–

21

    Financial activities

57

16

4

23

        Finance and insurance

56

17

3

24

            Credit intermediation and related activities

47

18

2

32

            Insurance carriers and related activities

70

15

3

12

        Real estate and rental and leasing

75

–

–

–

    Professional and business services

69

18

–

–

        Professional and technical services

75

–

–

–

    Education and health services

67

21

1

10

        Educational services

82

12

–

–

            Junior colleges, colleges, and universities

68

–

–

–

        Health care and social assistance

65

23

–

–

    Leisure and hospitality

93

–

–

–

        Accommodation and food services

100

–

–

–

    Other services

78

–

–

–

1 to 99 workers

67

21

2

10

    1 to 49 workers

64

21

3

12

    50 to 99 workers

73

20

–

–

100 workers or more

62

25

3

11

    100 to 499 workers

61

24

4

11

    500 workers or more

62

26

1

11

Geographic areas

        

Northeast

67

19

2

12

    New England

59

27

–

–

    Middle Atlantic

69

16

3

11

South

63

25

2

9

    South Atlantic

64

23

3

10

    East South Central

63

30

–

–

    West South Central

61

29

2

8

Midwest

61

25

2

12

    East North Central

64

23

2

12

    West North Central

53

32

–

–

West

60

26

–

–

    Mountain

63

18

–

–

    Pacific

60

29

–

–

1Plans open to new participants.

2New employees are not allowed in the plan. Benefit accruals may continue for existing participants.

3Participants in these plans stop accruing benefits on the date the plan is frozen. The benefit the employee receives is
calculated as of the day the plan was frozen.

4Surveyed occupations are classified into wage categories based on the average wage for the occupation, which may
include workers with earnings both above and below the threshold.  The categories were formed using percentile estimates
generated using wage data for March 2015.


Note: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals. Dash indicates no workers in this category or data did
not meet publication criteria. For definitions of major plans, key provisions, and related terms, see the "Glossary of Employee
Benefit Terms" at www.bls.gov/ncs/ebs/glossary20142015.htm.