via usatoday.com,
by Jeff Reeves, USA Today,
April 21, 2016,
Retirement planning has changed a lot over the last few decades. And perhaps one of the most dramatic changes is the slow and steady death of employer-provided pensions.
According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data, only 10% of private employers offered defined benefit retirement plans in 2011 to cover just 18% of America’s private-sector workers. Just 20 years prior, back in 1981, more than 80% of private workers were covered.
The reason for the shift is simple: Pension plans are very costly for businesses. So, the private sector has largely transitioned to 401(k) plans for its workers instead — which has resulted in plenty of new challenges, including the need for Americans to take charge of their investments as well as the rate of their retirement savings.