Benefits February 6, 2009
Poll Finds Execs Hard-Hit by Tough Economy
February 6, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A new survey by
a jobs Web site catering to executives found 86% say their
shrinking retirement savings will mean working longer, with
an average delay of 7 ½ years.
Reported by Fred Schneyer
A Reuters news report said the survey by TheLadders.com, a service catering to those making more than $100,000 per year, found that many responding executives were being forced by the economy to dip prematurely into retirement savings or their college funds.
Reuters said the survey found:
- 40% of those polled say they were forced to use retirement savings to weather the recession.
- 58% say they stopped contributing to their 401k retirement accounts altogether.
- Half of the executives say the recession would limit their children’s college prospects and 40% say they stopped investing in their children’s college savings accounts.
“Nobody’s been spared,” said Robert Turtledove, spokesman for TheLadders.com, in the news report. “This is investment-savvy, smart-managing, high-earning executives. It’s not a knee jerk reaction. I think it’s saying that wherever you are, this is impacting everybody.”
The survey covered 1,162 executives.