Recent data on retirement benefits from the National Compensation Survey (NCS) and related research articles

 

The National Compensation Survey (NCS) provides comprehensive information on defined contribution and defined benefit retirement plans. Under the NCS program, information on the incidence and provisions of benefits is published in stages. A bulletin is published with a March reference date each year with data collected from respondents for civilian (as defined by NCS), state and local government, and private industry workers, on the access to, and participation in, selected benefits such as retirement. A second publication, based on employer documentation of benefit plans, is published annually with more detailed information on basic provisions of defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans. Also, additional data on provisions of retirement plans are published on a rotating basis. Employer Costs for Employee Compensation are published quarterly. Included are costs of defined benefit plans, defined contribution plans, and employer Social Security contributions for different occupational and industry groups, worker characteristics, and geographic areas.

Employee Benefits (Retirement)

• Latest retirement coverage and selected attributes data: National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in the United States, March 2017. For example, the percent of workers with access to defined benefit plans, or the percent of workers in defined contribution plans required to contribute to their benefits.

• Most recent detailed defined benefit plan provisions data: National Compensation Survey: Health and Retirement Plan Provisions in Private Industry in the United States, 2017 and National Compensation Survey: Retirement Plan Provisions in State and Local Government in the United States, 2016. For example, the percent of defined benefit plan participants in plans with a primary formula based on percent of terminal earnings.

• Most recent detailed defined contribution plan provisions data: National Compensation Survey: Health and Retirement Plan Provisions in Private Industry in the United States, 2017 and National Compensation Survey: Retirement Plan Provisions in State and Local Government in the United States, 2016. For example, the percent of savings and thrift plan participants in plans with automatic enrollment available.

• Most recent data on defined benefit retirement survivor benefit for unmarried domestic partners: National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in the United States, March 2017 (table 44). For example, the percent of workers covered by defined benefit plans that make survivor benefits available to either same sex or opposite sex unmarried domestic partners.

• Glossary of retirement benefit terms

Employment Cost Trends

• Historical series on retirement benefit costs per hour worked, 2004 to present, at www.bls.gov/web/ecec/ececqrtn.pdf. Employer costs per hour worked for retirement and savings plans were $0.99 in March 2004; in March 2017 the costs were $1.92.

Published Articles

• As featured on The Economics Daily.

• “Defined contribution retirement plans: who has them and what do they cost?” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, December 2016 (examines 5 types of employer-provided defined contribution plans in private industry, participation rates by type of plan and by industry).

• “You’re getting a pension: What are your payment options?” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, June 2016 (attempts to aid in understanding of the multiple forms of benefit disbursement, including mandatory and optional, in defined benefit plans).

• “Are older Americans healthy enough to work longer?” Monthly Labor Review, April 2016 (examines the issues of workforce participation and retirement of older Americans in light of their state of health as well as their changing eligibility for Social Security and Medicare benefits).

• “Pension generosity in Oregon and its impact on the K12 workforce” BLS Working Paper, April 2016 (examines the relationship between pension generosity and incentives for longer tenure).

• “Trends in employer costs for defined benefit plans” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, February 2016 (examines employer costs and employee access to defined benefit plans).

• “Nonprofit pay and benefits: estimates from the National Compensation Survey” Monthly Labor Review, January 2016 (examines compensation, including incidence and costs of retirement benefits, in the nonprofit sector).

• “Access to specific provisions of employer-provided benefits: new estimates” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and benefits, September 2015, (examines access to specific provisions in medical and retirement plans).

• “Selected characteristics of savings and thrift plans for private industry workers” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, July 2015, (looks at the growth in the prevalence and at selected characteristics of employer-provided savings and thrift plans in private industry in the United States).

• “The relationship between access to benefits and weekly work hours” Monthly Labor Review, June 2015 (examines access to employee benefits, including retirement, based on employees’ work schedule and establishments’ industry).

• “Automatic enrollment, employer match rates, and employee compensation in 401(k) plans” Monthly Labor Review, May 2015 (based on unpublished NCS data, compares employer costs in establishments with and without automatic enrollment in 401 (k) plans).

• “A look at today's pension equity plans” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, April 2015, (looks at the features of pension equity plans in light of the changes in retirement benefits over the last several decades).

• “An analysis of multiemployer pension plans” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, October 2014 (examines multi-employer coverage of defined benefit and defined contribution retirement plans).

• “Linked incidence-detail outputs for defined contributions using the NCS” BLS Working Paper, September 2015 (examines the methodology for creating a new data series by combining the NCS incidence and provisions data).

• “The relationship between job characteristics and retirement savings in defined contribution plans” Monthly Labor Review, May 2013 (examines the relationships between Defined Contribution plan participants' industry and employer characteristics and reduced contributions to retirement accounts in a time of severe recession of 2007 to 2009).

• “Concerns about health insurance and retirement” Monthly Labor Review, April 2013 (reviews "Health Insurance Coverage in Retirement: the Erosion of Retiree Income Security," Christian E. Weller, Jeffrey Wenger, and Elise Gould).

• “Retirement and Medical Benefits: Who Has Both?” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, April 2013, (examines private industry workers' access to medical benefits, retirement benefits, and combinations of the two).

• “Retirement Costs for Defined Benefit Plans Higher than for Defined Contribution Plans” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, December 2012, (focuses on private industry employer retirement plan costs).

• “Who has benefits in private industry in 2012?” Beyond the Numbers: Pay and Benefits, September 2012, (focuses on access to and participation in retirement and other benefits by various worker and establishment characteristics).

• “Program Perspectives on Legally Required Benefit Costs” Program Perspectives, April 2012, (includes data on employer costs for Social Security by occupational and industry characteristics).

• “Changing Landscape of Employment-based Retirement Benefits” Compensation and Working Conditions Online, September 2011, (highlights changes in retirement plan features).

• “Program Perspectives on Defined-Contribution Plan Investment Choices” Program Perspectives, June 2011, (data on commonly found investment options in savings and thrift (e.g. 401(k)) retirement plans for private industry workers. Highlighted data includes available investment choices for employee and employer contributions).

• “Program Perspectives on Defined Contribution Plans” Program Perspectives, March 2011, (highlights six types of defined contribution plans, providing BLS data on participation by type of plan and method of contribution).

• “Program Perspectives on State and Local Government Benefits” Program Perspectives, January 2011, (includes data on Defined Contribution retirement plan types and Defined Contribution investment choices).

• “Program Perspectives on Defined Contribution Plans” Program Perspectives, November 2010, (data on defined contribution retirement plans, including access and participation rates for private industry and state and local government workers).

• “Program Perspectives on Combined Benefit Plans” Program Perspectives, July 2010, (new data series on employee access to medical care and retirement benefits).

• “How Does Your 401(K) Match Up?” Compensation and Working Conditions Online, May 2010, (overview of NCS terms for typical Savings and Thrift plans).

• “Program Perspectives on Defined-Benefit Plans” Program Perspectives, April 2010, (data on the frequency, accrual of benefits, and alternatives to frozen defined-benefit plans as well as the length of time since the plans were frozen).

 

Last Modified Date: May 15, 2018