September 7 is National 401(k) Day: Time to bring retirement readiness into focus

The Plan Sponsor Council of America launched a special retirement education campaign to coincide with 401(k) Day next month. National 401(k) Day officially is September 9, the first Friday after Labor Day, although PSCA encourages companies to plan their campaigns to best fit into their corporate calendars.

The traditional September observance was chosen more than 25 years ago to signify workers beginning the week with an acknowledgment of labor and ending the week with a celebration of retirement. The holiday, launched in 1996 by PSCA, encourages companies to help their employees stay informed and knowledgeable about retirement planning and preparation.

The theme of this year’s campaign is “Know Your Numbers,” which emphasizes the importance of bringing retirement readiness into focus by examining pre-retirees’ actual numbers. One of the free tools PSCA offers on its website in support of the campaign is a participant checklist that helps them organize important information they may need for retirement including current account numbers, investments, retirement savings, healthcare insurance, Medicare, taxes, Social Security projections, lifestyle expectations and legacy planning. Also available is a checklist for plan sponsors to evaluate the success of their plans that includes a breakdown of plan demographics, investment allocations, participant demographics and plan benchmarking.