1. What kind of investments are available?

There should be a range of investments available, particularly low-cost or index funds, as well as both aggressive and conservative choices and even target-date funds that are appropriate for a range of participant ages.

Employees have questions about their 401(k)s.

Even if they do pay attention to the educational materials provided by plan providers, they might be unclear on just how a plan works.

The slides that follow show 7 typical questions employees ask about their 401(k)s.

The article below also tells more. Be sure to check out the 'related article' link to our recent piece about a lawsuit that hinges on when and whether the plan participant read the retirement plan documents. (Photos: Shutterstock)

7. When am I eligible?

New hires will naturally want to know whether there’s a waiting period for eligibility to participate in the company’s 401(k) plan. GoBankingRates points out that while some companies automatically sign up new employees, others can make them wait as long as a year.

6. Are there any other options?

Should you not have a 401(k) plan on offer, or employees and prospective hires are turned off by various aspects of your plan’s design, be prepared for them to ask whether there’s any alternative—such as a Roth 401(k).

And the Motley Fool points out that while employees save on taxes right away with a traditional 401(k) and will have to pay taxes on the money they contribute to a Roth, that Roth money will be tax free when they withdraw it at retirement.

5. Do you match contributions? If so, how, and how much?

Premier Financial suggests that workers ask about matching funds, and the Fool points out that workers need to ask just how the match works. Otherwise they could end up disappointed at how much actually goes into the account, and when—particularly at retirement.

4. How much can I contribute annually?

Workers need to know how much they can put into their accounts, especially if your 401(k)’s standard contribution rate is at the small end of the range. You need to remember to tell them about the catch-up contribution for older workers, too, and at which age they can participate.

3. When am I vested?

If they’re savvy, workers will want to know whether they’re vested right away or whether there’s a waiting period—and if so, whether it’s the “cliff” variety, in which an employee is vested 100 percent after a set period of time, or the graded variety, in which vesting takes place by degrees—say, 10 percent per year.

2. What’s the expense ratio and are there other fees?

This could be a make-or-break question, depending on your answer. High fees will eat away at employee savings, whether they’re charged by the provider or included in the investments offered in the plan, so be prepared for employees not to be happy with your answers if those costs are too high.

1. What kind of investments are available?

There should be a range of investments available, particularly low-cost or index funds, as well as both aggressive and conservative choices and even target-date funds that are appropriate for a range of participant ages.