4% Retirement Matching?

[Daniel]

I was at the dentist hygienist. The screen in the waiting room said they we're hiring various positions.

It listed benefits. One of them was- "4% retirement.
matching".

I'm pretty sure I read it correctly.

What do you think this is?

Do you think it's that employee contributes $ to a retirement account, and the employer matches 4% annually?

I don't know if I'm understanding this correctly, but it doesn't seem like much of a benefit.

[wtg]

I'm assuming it means the employer is matching 4% of the employee salary into a 401K or other tax-deferred plan. The employee would effectively be saving the equivalent of 8% of their salary. Compounded over time that's a pretty good chunk of change.

If that's what it is, I actually think it's quite good. It was for me. My company matched 3% and thirty years later I have a tidy retirement account.

The magic of compounding....

[jon-nyc]

Im sure its up to 4%. In other words if you put aside some number 4% or less of your salary, they’ll match it dollar for dollar.

[Daniel]

That does sound better.

From my perspective, for better or worse, the 401K laws were written in the late '70 iirc and defined benefit pensions were almost completely phased out on the '80's.

My grandfather retired with Air Force after 20 years, and then had a 10 year vesting (a 10 years vesting) after 13 years with the VA. His VA retirement check wasn't much but by the time he earned it, it was all going into the bank. My grandmother had a 20 year vesting with Fireman's Fund before American Express bought them. She got a vesting from FF and a severance from American Express. My mother had a 20byear vesting with NYS (that didn't amount to much because she passed a year later).

The truth is my father wouldn't have been able to leave my brother and me anything if not for defined benefit pensions totaling 20 + 10 + 20 + 20 years or 70 years of vestings and my father's 30 years of working as an electric, or 100 years of work.

It's humbling to know how hard ny ancestors worked and to know that they did it for their family more than for themselves.

But compounding interest is a great thing. Large parts of my grandparents' estates were because of it. They kept reinvesting money at around 5% interest. It's too bad those days are gone.

It's too bad interest rates are low, inflation is rampant, and nobody has the opportunity to work for one company for 30 years now.

It's too bad the actuaries were extraordinary and made these systems run are barely remembered today let alone their work respected.

The powers that be should be amplifying the Social Security Act. It's too bad they're only concern is privatizing it

At the end of the day, risk is risk.

We've all heard about the many people who have to work into their '80's and '90's now.

I can't imagine it. I don't know how they do it.

Congratulations @wtg ! I'm glad it worked out for you.

[Daniel]

I'm so dumb! The dental office was having an all day Halloween costume party. I don't celebrate Halloween plus I can be somewhat too literal at times in social situations if that makes sense. I failed to notice. This was the day of my initial appointment. I thought the receptionist was a security guard. Hahaha! She was very beautiful and charming too which didn't help matters. Omg.