An overwhelming majority (77 percent) of respondents consider the ability to save enough for retirement a major public policy issue.

That’s among the findings of a survey from Charles Schwab on the attitudes and behaviors of 401(k) participants, which also found that saving for retirement is the top source of financial stress for workers, even above job security, credit card debt and monthly expenses.

And millennials are even more worried about saving for retirement than they are about paying off their student loans.

And while they consider saving for retirement a major policy issue, that doesn’t mean they agree on which presidential candidate would be better for their own financial well-being in retirement — Hillary Clinton was the choice of 52 percent of respondents, while the other 48 percent went with Donald Trump.

Lots of them agree about something else, though; that they shouldn’t be their own investment advisors, any more than they should be their own doctors or mechanics (and you all remember that old lawyer saying, “He who represents himself has a fool for a client”?).

Seventy percent said they want professional, personalized 401(k) investment advice; 74 percent say they would be very or extremely confident in their ability to make the right 401(k) investment decisions with the help of a financial professional, while just 44 percent would be that confident if left to their own devices; and 85 percent would be interested in using a broader financial wellness program if it were offered by their employer.

Most respondents said that a 401(k) is either their only or largest source of retirement savings — but that 401(k) is important to them; 90 percent consider it a must-have benefit, and would think twice before accepting a job that didn’t offer one.

But, as important as it might be, that doesn’t mean that people actually know how much they need to save for a secure retirement — just 43 percent said they knew that, compared with 91 percent who know their ideal credit score and 90 percent who know their ideal weight.

And it doesn’t mean that they’re prepared to sacrifice life’s little pleasures today to ensure that their 401(k)s will see them through; a third of workers said they aren’t saving more because they don’t want to give up things that add to their quality of life, like vacations or dinners out.

Instant Insights /

Schwab survey looks into the minds of 401(k) participants

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