401(k) matches never went away - SmartBrief

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401(k) matches never went away

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Leadership

SmartPulse — our weekly reader poll in Smartbrief on Workforce — tracks feedback from leading managers and HR practitioners. We run the poll question each Wednesday in our e-newsletter.

Last week, we asked: Are you planning to start matching 401(k) contributions again?

  • We never stopped matching, 64%
  • We never matched contributions, 17%
  • No — we’re not going to resume matching, 9%
  • Yes — we have already resumed matching – 8%
  • Yes — we’re planning on resuming matching this year, 2%

While news of the possible end to the recession and progressing back to business as usual has dominated the  business press, one of the leading pieces of evidence are the resurgence of 401(k) matches. Well, there’s good news and there’s bad news. The good news is that matches never went away for most people. The bad news is that matches never went away and it might not be the best economic indicator of things picking up. I suppose we’ll have to continue looking for other leading economic indicators.

Lance Haun is community director for ERE.net, the main guy over at Rehaul.com and a member of the SmartBrief on Workforce Advisory Board.