Defined benefit frozen retirement plans: Benefits accrual

Table 5. Defined benefit frozen retirement plans:1 Benefits accrual,
civilian workers,2 National Compensation Survey, March 2011

(All workers participating in frozen defined benefit plans = 100 percent)

Characteristics

Retirement benefit accrual3

All existing
participants
continue to
accrue
benefits

Some
existing
participants
continue to
accrue
benefits

No existing
participants
continue to
accrue
benefits

All workers

74

5

21

Worker characteristics

      

Management, professional, and related

77

6

18

    Management, business, and financial

68

6

26

    Professional and related

81

6

13

        Teachers

100

–

–

            Primary, secondary, and special education
             school teachers

100

–

–

        Registered nurses

87

2

11

Service

87

–

–

    Protective service

95

–

5

Sales and office

65

5

31

    Office and administrative support

68

4

28

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

85

3

12

    Construction, extraction, farming, fishing, and
     forestry

94

–

–

    Installation, maintenance, and repair

81

4

15

Production, transportation, and material moving

69

7

24

    Production

76

5

20

    Transportation and material moving

61

11

28

Full time

74

5

21

Part time

77

–

–

Union

92

3

5

Nonunion

65

6

28

Average wage within the following categories:4

      

    Lowest 25 percent

70

–

–

        Lowest 10 percent

56

–

–

    Second 25 percent

70

5

26

    Third 25 percent

72

6

22

    Highest 25 percent

78

6

17

        Highest 10 percent

76

6

18

Establishment characteristics

      

Goods-producing industries

72

10

19

Service-providing industries

75

4

21

    Education and health services

94

1

5

        Educational services

99

–

–

            Elementary and secondary schools

100

–

–

            Junior colleges, colleges, and universities

95

–

–

        Health care and social assistance

87

3

9

            Hospitals

86

4

10

    Public administration

100

–

–

1 to 99 workers

58

4

38

    1 to 49 workers

49

5

46

    50 to 99 workers

69

1

29

100 workers or more

77

5

18

    100 to 499 workers

77

4

20

    500 workers or more

77

6

17

Geographic areas

      

New England

73

2

25

Middle Atlantic

80

3

18

East North Central

74

–

–

West North Central

70

–

–

South Atlantic

65

4

30

East South Central

70

–

–

West South Central

78

3

19

Mountain

59

–

–

Pacific

82

6

12

1Plans closed to new workers or plans that cease accruals for some or all plan participants.

2Includes workers in the private nonfarm economy except those in private households, and workers in the
public sector, except the federal government. See Technical Note for further explanation.

3Benefit accruals are for existing participants since the plan was closed to new workers or stopped
accruing benefits.

4The categories are based on the average wage for each occupation surveyed, which may include
workers with earnings both above and below the threshold. The average wages are based on the estimates
published in the "National Compensation Survey: Occupational Earnings in the United States, 2010." See
Technical Note for more details.


NOTE: Because of rounding, sums of individual items may not equal totals. Dash indicates no workers in this
category or data did not meet publication criteria. For definitions of major plans, key provisions, and related
terms, see the "Glossary of Employee Benefit Terms" at www.bls.gov/ncs/ebs/glossary20102011.htm.