Retirement Plan Coverage in Small and Large Firms. Small Business ResearchSummary

摘要

Retirement plan coverage rates, i.e. the percentage of workers participating inretirement plans, tripled from about 16 percent of full-time workers in 1940 to about half of full-time workers in 1979. Since then, however, overall private sector employer-financed retirement plan coverage rates have either declined slightly or remained stable. Research indicates that firm size is an important determinant of pension plan coverage or availability. Evidence suggests that retirement plan coverage is lower in small business for numerous reasons. This research set out to determine the economic and preference factors explaining why retirement plans are far less prevalent in small than large firms.