Benefits February 20, 2007

Gen X Wants Simple IRA Investment Process

February 20, 2007 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A significant amount of Generation X investors who don't put money into an individual retirement account (IRA) would do so if they only had to make an initial investment choice and then forget about it, according to a recent survey.
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The survey by Charles Schwab & Co. of 500 people from the ages of 25 and 40 found that 44% of those who do not currently fund an IRA said they would be more likely to invest in an IRA if there was a one-time investment choice, according to a press release. That same perspective was shared almost equally between current IRA/401(k) investors (50%) and non-investors (39%).

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Twenty percent of those in Generation X say they don’t know how an IRA works, or even what it is, and 40% of those who are saving for retirement have an IRA.

Other results of the survey include:

  • 16% of people in this age group plan to use their tax refund to invest in an IRA or other retirement account;
  • 59% plan to use the refund for other uses;
  • 58% plan to use it to pay off debt.

“Gen-X’ers are facing a range of financial challenges – from paying off college debt to making mortgage payments to saving for their families,” said Rande Spiegelman, vice president of financial planning for the Schwab Center for Investment Research, in the news release. “What we are seeing in these results is that competing spending priorities are impacting their ability to save for retirement. But with a few minor adjustments, younger investors can make the necessary changes to ensure they are doing everything they can to save for the future.”

Benefits February 16, 2007

Survey: 52% of Workers Satisfied with their Bosses

February 16, 2007 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Nearly 60% of employees say their bosses make time to review their job concerns and 45% say their managers help them develop new skills, according to a recent survey.
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The survey of about 3,000 U.S. workers was developed by staffing service Robert Half International and CareerBuilder.com and looks at how employees view their higher-ups.

The survey found that workers view their supervisors slightly more favorably than they view the corporate executives at their company, with 44% saying they are satisfied with their corporate leaders’ performance, 8% lower than those who said the same about their bosses.

The survey also found that 36% percent of employees said those at the top lead by example, and 34% believe their corporate leaders are effective at motivating staff.

Other survey results include:

  • 52% of employees say they are satisfied with their bosses, compared to 28% who disagree;
  • 60% of workers say they can trust their managers, compared to 21% who believe say they cannot;
  • 24% of workers feel they could do a better job than their bosses if they were given the reins.

The full results of the survey are here http://www.roberthalf.com/PressRoom .

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