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Employee Benefits Survey
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Standard Errors
Retirement benefits: Access, participation, and take-up rates

Table 2. Standard errors for retirement benefits: Access, participation, and take-up rates,1 civilian workers,2 March 2017
Characteristics All retirement benefits3 Defined benefit Defined contribution
Access Participation Take-up
rate 		Access Participation Take-up
rate 		Access Participation Take-up
rate
All workers
0.8
0.8
0.6
0.5
0.5
0.6
0.7
0.7
0.6
Worker characteristics
                 
Management, professional, and related
1.1
1.1
0.6
1.1
1.0
0.7
1.2
1.1
0.6
    Management, business, and financial
1.4
1.4
0.7
1.6
1.5
1.0
1.4
1.4
0.8
    Professional and related
1.3
1.3
0.7
1.3
1.2
0.9
1.3
1.1
0.8
        Teachers
2.3
2.2
1.0
2.6
2.6
1.1
1.7
1.3
1.8
            Primary, secondary, and special education
             school teachers
2.4
2.4
1.1
3.1
3.0
1.1
2.1
1.8
3.5
        Registered nurses
1.6
2.3
1.9
3.2
3.0
1.6
2.3
2.5
2.4
Service
2.0
1.4
2.4
0.8
0.8
1.3
2.1
1.2
2.6
    Protective service
3.1
4.2
5.5
5.1
4.7
1.2
3.8
2.4
7.2
Sales and office
1.0
1.0
0.8
0.8
0.7
1.4
1.0
0.9
0.8
    Sales and related
1.8
1.5
1.3
1.1
1.0
4.5
1.6
1.3
1.3
    Office and administrative support
1.3
1.4
0.9
0.9
0.7
1.1
1.3
1.3
1.1
Natural resources, construction, and maintenance
1.9
1.5
1.3
1.4
1.3
0.9
1.7
1.3
1.4
    Construction, extraction, farming, fishing, and
     forestry
3.0
2.5
2.1
2.2
2.1
1.0
3.0
2.4
2.5
    Installation, maintenance, and repair
2.3
1.8
1.4
1.5
1.4
1.1
2.1
1.7
1.4
Production, transportation, and material moving
1.3
1.1
0.9
1.0
0.7
1.9
1.5
1.3
1.0
    Production
2.2
1.8
1.2
1.6
0.9
3.4
2.2
1.8
1.4
    Transportation and material moving
1.5
1.6
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.6
2.0
1.9
1.6
Full time
0.6
0.7
0.6
0.6
0.6
0.6
0.6
0.7
0.6
Part time
1.5
0.9
1.5
0.7
0.5
1.8
1.4
0.8
1.8
Union
0.8
0.9
0.6
1.2
1.2
0.6
1.5
1.1
1.1
Nonunion
0.9
0.8
0.7
0.5
0.4
0.8
0.8
0.7
0.7
Average wage within the following categories:4
                 
    Lowest 25 percent
1.7
1.1
1.5
0.5
0.4
2.4
1.5
1.0
1.5
        Lowest 10 percent
2.2
1.1
2.2
0.6
0.4
5.3
2.1
1.0
2.3
    Second 25 percent
1.1
1.1
0.9
0.7
0.6
1.0
1.0
1.0
1.0
    Third 25 percent
1.0
1.1
0.8
1.0
0.8
0.8
0.9
1.0
0.9
    Highest 25 percent
0.9
0.9
0.5
1.2
1.1
0.7
1.1
1.0
0.6
        Highest 10 percent
1.4
1.4
0.8
2.0
1.6
1.3
1.7
1.6
0.9
Establishment characteristics
                 
Goods-producing industries
0.9
1.0
1.0
1.3
0.9
1.6
1.0
0.9
1.0
Service-providing industries
0.9
0.9
0.7
0.6
0.5
0.7
0.9
0.8
0.7
    Education and health services
1.8
1.8
0.8
1.3
1.4
1.0
1.5
1.4
1.0
        Educational services
1.2
1.2
0.6
1.2
1.3
0.9
1.0
0.8
1.4
            Elementary and secondary schools
1.7
1.7
0.8
1.7
1.7
0.8
1.2
0.9
2.3
            Junior colleges, colleges, and universities
1.1
1.4
1.1
1.9
2.0
2.1
1.9
1.5
2.0
        Health care and social assistance
2.6
2.7
1.3
1.8
1.9
2.7
2.4
2.2
1.3
            Hospitals
1.0
1.5
1.2
2.5
2.2
2.4
2.1
2.2
1.5
    Public administration
0.9
1.3
0.9
1.2
1.3
1.1
1.3
1.2
2.5
1 to 99 workers
1.3
1.1
1.2
0.6
0.5
1.0
1.2
1.1
1.2
    1 to 49 workers
1.4
1.1
1.4
0.5
0.5
1.4
1.3
1.1
1.5
    50 to 99 workers
2.4
2.3
2.1
1.5
1.3
1.8
2.4
2.4
2.4
100 workers or more
0.8
0.8
0.5
0.8
0.7
0.7
0.8
0.8
0.7
    100 to 499 workers
1.2
1.2
0.8
1.1
1.0
1.2
1.2
1.0
0.9
    500 workers or more
1.1
1.2
0.7
1.3
1.1
0.8
1.1
1.2
0.9
Geographic areas
                 
Northeast
1.8
1.6
1.2
1.5
1.4
1.3
1.4
1.2
1.2
    New England
3.0
2.0
2.6
2.4
2.2
2.0
3.4
1.5
2.5
    Middle Atlantic
1.8
1.9
1.4
1.4
1.4
1.5
1.2
1.4
1.5
South
1.4
1.6
1.2
0.8
0.8
1.0
1.4
1.5
1.4
    South Atlantic
2.0
2.2
1.6
1.1
1.1
1.2
2.1
2.1
1.7
    East South Central
1.3
2.9
4.3
2.7
2.9
4.7
1.0
2.5
4.0
    West South Central
3.0
3.0
1.5
1.1
1.0
1.1
2.7
2.8
2.3
Midwest
1.9
1.6
0.8
1.1
1.0
1.3
1.7
1.4
0.9
    East North Central
2.3
2.2
0.8
1.1
1.1
1.6
2.1
1.9
0.8
    West North Central
3.4
2.1
1.7
2.5
2.0
1.8
2.4
1.3
2.2
West
1.1
0.9
1.3
1.1
0.9
1.4
1.2
0.9
1.3
    Mountain
1.6
1.2
2.2
1.1
0.8
1.1
1.7
1.3
2.3
    Pacific
1.4
1.2
1.6
1.6
1.2
1.9
1.5
1.1
1.6
1The take-up rate is an estimate of the percentage of workers with access to a plan who participate in the plan, rounded for presentation.
2Includes workers in private industry and state and local government. See Technical Note for further explanation.
3Includes defined benefit pension plans and defined contribution retirement plans. Workers are considered as having access or as participating if they have access to or are participating
in at least one of these plan types.
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 2017.

Note: For definitions of major plans, key provisions, and related terms, see the "Glossary of Employee Benefit Terms" at www.bls.gov/ncs/ebs/glossary20162017.htm.

Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Compensation Survey.