Defined benefit retirement plans: Employee contribution requirement and method of contribution

Table 3. Defined benefit retirement plans: Employee contribution requirement and method
of contribution, private industry workers,  National Compensation Survey, March 2011

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

Characteristics

Employee
contribution
required

Fixed percent of annual earnings1

Employee
contribution
not required

Total

Mean fixed
percent of
annual
earnings

Median fixed
percent of
annual
earnings

All workers

4

2

4.5

5.0

96

Worker characteristics

          

Management, professional, and related

4

3

4.5

5.0

96

    Management, business, and financial

3

2

4.8

5.0

97

    Professional and related

5

4

4.4

5.0

95

Service

4

3

5.7

6.9

96

Sales and office

2

2

4.2

–

98

    Office and administrative support

3

2

4.2

–

97

Natural resources, construction, and maintenance

4

1

3.5

3.9

96

    Construction, extraction, farming, fishing, and
     forestry

3

–

–

–

97

    Installation, maintenance, and repair

5

2

3.4

3.9

95

Production, transportation, and material moving

5

2

4.3

3.9

95

    Production

4

–

–

–

96

    Transportation and material moving

6

3

4.4

–

94

Full time

4

2

4.5

5.0

96

Part time

3

3

4.2

3.9

97

Union

3

2

4.7

–

97

Nonunion

4

3

4.5

5.0

96

Average wage within the following categories:2

          

    Lowest 25 percent

5

–

–

–

95

    Second 25 percent

4

3

4.7

–

96

    Third 25 percent

4

3

4.1

–

96

    Highest 25 percent

3

2

4.5

–

97

        Highest 10 percent

3

3

5.0

–

97

Establishment characteristics

          

Goods-producing industries

3

1

2.7

3.0

97

    Manufacturing

2

1

2.7

3.0

98

Service-providing industries

4

3

4.6

5.0

96

    Trade, transportation, and utilities

4

2

3.7

3.9

96

        Wholesale trade

7

–

–

–

93

        Transportation and warehousing

7

4

4.1

3.9

93

    Information

2

2

3.0

3.0

98

    Financial activities

2

1

5.3

–

98

        Finance and insurance

2

1

5.3

–

98

            Credit intermediation and related activities

2

1

2.2

–

98

    Professional and business services

2

–

–

–

98

    Education and health services

7

6

5.0

–

93

        Educational services

14

–

–

–

86

            Junior colleges, colleges, and universities

2

1

3.4

–

98

        Health care and social assistance

7

6

5.0

–

93

    Leisure and hospitality

–

–

–

–

100

        Accommodation and food services

–

–

–

–

100

1 to 99 workers

6

4

4.4

5.0

94

    1 to 49 workers

7

6

4.4

5.0

93

    50 to 99 workers

3

–

–

–

97

100 workers or more

3

2

4.6

–

97

    100 to 499 workers

4

2

5.8

6.9

96

    500 workers or more

3

1

2.8

3.0

97

Geographic areas

          

New England

3

1

4.5

–

97

Middle Atlantic

4

3

4.6

5.0

96

East North Central

2

1

3.3

3.0

98

West North Central

5

–

–

–

95

South Atlantic

5

3

3.2

3.9

95

West South Central

3

–

–

–

97

Pacific

2

2

6.2

7.0

98

1The employee contributes a fixed percentage of his or her
earnings to the retirement plan.


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.

2The 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.