NewsDash – June 1, 2022

June 1st, 2022
Insight on Plan Design & Investment Strategy Every Weekday

Benefits

How to Communicate With Your Plan Participants Right Now

Economic turmoil is an opportunity to connect plan participants to education about markets.

Data and Research

The Changing Path of Retirement

The path to retirement no longer resembles that of older generations; a new study examines what has changed.

Most Read

Benefits
Employers Move Gingerly on Improving PTO, Family-Planning Benefits

Benefits
State-Facilitated Retirement Savings Assets Hit $3B

Products
PGIM Launches Private Credit CIT for DC Plans

ECONOMIC EVENTS

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index decreased slightly in May, following a small increase in April. The Index now stands at 106.4 (1985=100), down from 108.6 in April. The Present Situation Index—based on consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions—declined to 149.6 from 152.9 last month. The Expectations Index—based on consumers’ short-term outlook for income, business, and labor market conditions—declined to 77.5 from 79.0.

MARKET MIRROR

Monday, the Dow fell 222.84 points (0.67%) to 32,990.12, the Nasdaq lost 49.74 points (0.41%) to close at 12,081.39, and the S&P 500 was down 26.09 points (0.63%) to 41,32.15. The Russell 2000 decreased 23.85 points (1.26%) to 1,864.04, and the Wilshire 5000 was down 305.87 points (0.74%) to 41,085.39.

The price of the 10-year Treasury note was virtually unchanged with its yield increasing to 2.863%. The price of the 30-year Treasury bond decreased 1 30/32 bringing its yield up to 3.065%.

Data and Research

The Value Financial Advisers Bring to Plan Sponsors

Plan sponsors with dedicated financial advisers usually have better 401(k) plan offerings and participation, according to a survey.

SMALL TALK

ON THIS DATE: In 1774, the British government ordered the Port of Boston closed. In 1792, Kentucky became the 15th state of the U.S. In 1892, the General Electric Company began operations after the merger of Edison General Electric and the Thomson-Houston Electric companies. In 1938, baseball helmets were worn by Major League Baseball players for the first time. In 1967, the Beatles released “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” In 1980, the Cable News Network, the world’s first 24-hour television news network, debuted. In 2008, the Phoenix Mars Lander became the first NASA spacecraft to scoop Martian soil.

Industry Intel Roundup—Featured Webinars

PLANSPONSOR is pleased to present the next edition of our Industry Intelligence roundup. This week, we are featuring webinars sponsored by experienced providers in the industry. The content was created to educate, inform and offer ideas for plan sponsors regarding plan design, investing, administration and compliance.

May 19, 2026

Understanding the DOL’s Latest Proposal for Prudent Investment Selection

The Department of Labor has issued a new proposal that could affect how retirement plan fiduciaries evaluate, document, and defend investment decisions. This webinar will provide: • Timely context and practical perspective on the proposal • Insight into what the proposal is intended to clarify • Considerations for how fiduciary processes may be affected • Key questions plan sponsors and committees should be thinking about as the rulemaking process continues

SPONSORED BY: Aon | June 18, 2026

DC Plan Management Under Pressure

Retirement plan risks rarely emerge all at once—they surface through early operational signals that often go unnoticed until issues escalate. As data becomes more abundant yet fragmented, and innovation outpaces traditional oversight frameworks, plan sponsors face growing pressure to ensure their governance, operations, and focus on participant outcomes keep pace. In this webinar, Aon’s Grace Lattyak moderates a practical discussion with Aon colleagues Tamara Langham, Jeff Forman, and Melissa Elbert on whether the way plans operate today is truly fit for today’s environment. The panel will focus on how decisions are made, escalated, monitored, and governed in real time. Drawing on real‑world observations, the discussion will explore where leading sponsors are revisiting committee charters, refining dashboards, clarifying roles, and strengthening vendor oversight to surface risk earlier, improve accountability and support more timely, informed action. Attendees will also hear how subtle breakdowns—missed signals, overloaded agendas, or unclear ownership—can undermine even well‑designed plans. Participants will leave with practical considerations and diagnostic questions to bring back to their committees—focused on strengthening operational discipline, governance effectiveness and resilience before small issues become material. Key Topics Will Include: Governance: Is your governance model still designed for today’s scale, scrutiny, and accountability—or yesterday’s plan? Data: Do you know how to turn data into earlier signals around risk, errors, leakage, and participant engagement? Outcomes: How do you credibly measure progress in participant behavior and decision‑making—not just plan features and participation rates? Innovation: What is best practice for evaluating new tools with clear ownership, monitoring, and guardrails so innovation reduces risk rather than adds complexity?

August 19, 2026

DB Plan Administration

Besides findings from PLANSPONSOR’s annual Defined Benefit Administration Survey, our panel will discuss trends in the defined benefit plan sector. Speakers will also talk about ongoing management of DB plans—whether closed, frozen or active—and benchmarking DB plan providers. With many corporate DB plans now overfunded, the panel will also discuss ways that sponsoring companies can use their plan’s surplus.

November 18, 2026

Understanding Participant Behavior

The PLANSPONSOR Participant Survey examines the attitudes and behaviors of American workers participating—or not—in an employer-sponsored retirement plan. We’ll explore findings about respondents’ participation and saving decisions, retirement expectations and most-valued benefits. Speakers will suggest what the findings mean for retirement plan design, benefit offerings and participant engagement.