Betterment at Work, a provider of modern, scalable 401(k)s for growing businesses, released the fourth installment of its annual survey on the state of retirement readiness and financial benefits across the U.S. workforce.
Betterment’s 2024 Retirement Readiness Report, which examines data from 1,000 full-time U.S. workers, found that while many employees feel a strong sense of long-term “retirement confidence,” anxiety around near-term finances is growing and “impacting workplace productivity.”
According to the update from Betterment, four-in-five respondents say it’s important that their employer “provides them with strong financial benefits.”
Key findings from Betterment at Work’s 2024 Retirement Readiness Report include:
- Retirement confidence and savings are up, but there is still uncertainty:
79% state they have access to a 401(k), and 89% of those are contributing to it — up from 83% in 2023, and just 70% in 2022. - 72% feel at least somewhat confident that they’ll be able to save enough to support themselves in retirement.
- However, 56% expect they’ll need at least $500k saved to retire comfortably, yet only 38% actually expect to have that much saved.
Financial anxiety is impacting workplace productivity: - 62% report facing moderate to significant financial anxiety — with inflation (62%), credit card debt (34%), and housing costs (31%) ranking as the top three financial stressors.
- 66% of Gen Z and 57% of Millennials report that financial anxiety impacts their ability to work “all” or “most” of the time, compared to
- 41% of Gen X and 28% of Boomers.
Benefits are a key contributor to workplace engagement:
- 57% say they would be enticed to leave their job if a prospective employer offered better benefits than their current employer.
- Workers at smaller companies (61%) would be more likely to jump ship for better financial benefits, compared to 58% and 53% of workers at midsize and large businesses.
- Top financial benefits ranked most important to financial wellbeing: a 401(k) plan (70%), 401(k) matching program (66%), and employer-sponsored emergency fund (36%).
Sarah Levy, CEO of Betterment said:
“Our survey highlights a critical gap: while employees feel hopeful about their long-term finances, short-term anxieties drive poor decision-making and reduce productivity at work. Employers are positioned to close this gap with benefits and education that equip employees to manage financial challenges and foster financial confidence.”
Methodology
An online survey was conducted with a panel of potential “respondents from August 24, 2024 to August 30, 2024.”
The survey was completed by a total of “1,000 respondents who are 18 years and older, and full-time employees.”
The sample was provided by Sago, a research panel company.
All respondents were invited to take the survey via an email invitation.
Panel respondents were incentivized to participate via the panel’s established points program, “regardless of positive or negative feedback.”
Participants were “not required” to be Betterment clients to participate.
Betterment at Work is a provider of modern, “scalable 401(k)s for growing businesses.”
Built with the same technology as Betterment, which manages over $50 billion in assets, our platform allows them to “deliver a trusted and professional investing experience.”
Combined with compliance support, payroll integrations, and plan design features, employers benefit from a streamlined experience that “sets a new standard for workplace retirement plans.”