Although the word is new, we probably all know someone who, perhaps nudged into it by the pandemic, is “pretired”—working, but not in the same way as before, on the path toward retirement. Indeed, for many workers, especially those in small businesses, the pandemic continues to impact decisions about employment and retirement.
Survey Says
Recently, OnePoll, commissioned by retirement plan provider Human Interest, surveyed 2,002 adults between the ages of 35 and 70 and concluded: “Americans show growing interest in a transitional life stage between full-time work and traditional retirement….”
Brian Anderson, Editor-in-Chief of 401k Magazine observes that the “idea that work stops in retirement seems to be in question” and shares these insights from the survey:
71% of Americans said the pandemic changed their target retirement age. Roughly one in three said the pandemic had changed everything about their retirement decisions—how they save (31%), what they want to do (31%) and when they want to retire (29%). An even greater number said it had changed how they make health decisions (40%) and how they save for emergencies (42%)…
Nine out of 10 workers are open to switching fields or jobs during pretirement. Small and medium-sized business (SMB) employees were more affected by the pandemic than those working for large companies—72% of those working at organizations with 250 to 499 employees said they will retire later than planned, 35 points higher than those working at large companies…. Sixty-nine percent believe retirement is a gradual change away from full-time paid work, rather than a complete stop or a full transition to leisure.
Leaders at Human Interest point out that many workers continue to be in flux as to work interests and choices about where to live and how to balance work and life, and perspectives can be attributed to pandemic experiences:
Two-thirds (66%) of those who had a very difficult pandemic experience think the ideal pretirement age is below 50, while less than a quarter (24%) of those who had a neutral pandemic experience said the same. Workers have a diverse set of reasons for transitioning into a new job or industry before retirement. Looking to earn money and make their savings last longer (40%) and wanting to do something impactful for their community (39%) are at the top of the list.
As many workers continue to reshuffle their priorities and work lives, retirement benefits offer an important incentive. Human Interest observes that “In the past three years, 42% of employees with a retirement benefit at work say they saw their employer contribution get cut,” and encourages employers to rethink their retirement plans: “Employers wanting to avoid another Great Reshuffle could prioritize flexible retirement plans that can make it simple for employees to save for their future. That move may retain more employees and make it easier for businesses to navigate around whatever future challenges there are, whether that’s economic conditions, new workforce trends or other macro changes.” With workers looking to employer sponsored retirement plans for help, plan sponsors are reminded of how important their efforts are—as well as how essential it is to have protection against mistakes via fiduciary liabiity insurance. Change filled times—and dissatisfaction—contribute to increases in allegations of fiduciary breaches. Available with just a one year commitment, Colonial Surety’s fiduciary and cyber liability insurance package covers defense costs and penalty limits up to $1,000,000, if faced with claims of alleged or actual breaches of duty in connection with the employee retirement plan. Because a cyber breach can quickly spiral into allegations of a fiduciary breach, it’s critical for retirement plan sponsors to have both cyber and fiduciary liability protection. Colonial makes it so efficient and reasonable that you can secure your protection in minutes now:
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Interesting To know
Reporting on the survey by Human Interest, 401k Magazine shares that the top four states respondents want to retire in are: California, Florida, New York and Georgia. As to what workers are hoping to do in retirement, here are their top four goals:
- Write a book, start a podcast, or achieve another creative accomplishment (38%)
- Explore my city or state (36%)
- Learn and start playing a new sport, run in a race, or take up yoga (34%)
- Live in a vacation destination for a while (34%)
As a plan sponsor, don’t forget, defense in protecting retirement funds is all you. In fact, plan sponsor vigilance is really the last line of defense when it comes to protecting retirement plan participants—and their data and savings—from cybercriminals, say experts at the American Society for Pension Professionals and Actuaries (ASPPA). Having a cyber breach response plan at the ready can make all the difference in whether or not a cybersecurity incident spirals into a disaster. It’s possible to put a response plan in place today via Colonial Surety’s affordable Cyber-Fiduciary Liability package, which includes:
- Expert-led response services following a data breach.
- Protection from lawsuits and regulatory actions related to the breach.
- Legal services.
- Computer forensic services.
- Public relations and crisis management expenses.
- Notification services.
- Call Center services.
- Credit and Identity monitoring
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