NU Online News Service, June 17, 2003, 9:35 p.m. EDT – Participation in 401(k) plans seems to be falling, according to Hewitt Associates L.L.C., Lincolnshire, Ill.
Researchers at the benefits consulting firm compared the behavior of 330,000 employees who were eligible to join 401(k) plans in 2001 and 2002. The 401(k) participation rate for those employees fell to 68.2% in 2002, from 71%, and the decline was greater for younger and newer employees, Hewitt says.
Twenty-seven percent of the plan participants had balances of less than $5,000, and the average plan balance fell 2.5% in 2002, to $49,000.
