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AUTHOR: R Quinn on 1/10/2026
An article in Commonweal Magazine is a bit unkind to 401k plans from the interesting perspective that asking people to save on their own takes away from other uses.
“But there’s increasing evidence that our current approach is not only economically inefficient but also a key contributor to the precarity and isolation unraveling the social fabric. “
“What was once a balanced system of collective and individual support has come to rely on a single, unreliable leg.”
The author also criticized the investment community and its influence on Congress. The basic argument is we need a better government run retirement system of some kind and it’s unfair to put the burden on individuals to save, invest and take the risk. I’m not sure how I feel about that.
A proposal by Sen Sanders would require employers to offer a pension plan. That is beyond unlikely.
I benefit from a good pension, but one based on decades of employment with the plan sponsor which is not and never was the norm. I also had a 401k beginning in 1982. Over many years I designed, negotiated and managed both plans.
I support increasing Social Security as a forced way to save, provided the program is always funded at necessary levels – meaning higher payroll taxes. I would not abandon 401k plans, but I would consolidate all current tax- advantaged programs into one design.
How do you feel about the 401k? Do you see a retirement crisis in America, especially among the lower 50% of earners?
QUINNSCOMMENTARY 
He doesn’t even get the origin of 401k right. It was intended by Congress TO DISCOURAGE DEFERRALS, not to encourage them. Idiots abound. We now have over 700,000 401k plans, 100+ million accounts, and over their lifetime, over $20 Trillion has passed through or remains in 401k plans – between start in 1981 and today.
A great wealth builder. Compare those who have and use, those who have and don’t use and those who don’t have.
what an idiot ass.
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As a state worker (California), I had a 457 plan instead of 401(k), so the employer did not contribute to the plan. I began to contribute modestly when our youngest daughter married and moved out.* When we retired, we converted to IRAs, can’t remember whyMany government jobs are notorious for below market salaries and above average benefits. Our pension plus Social Security are sufficient to live comfortably (not lavishly) and continue to add to our savings and investments instead of drawing from them. So our investments and IRAs are ‘for the kids’.
One small? fly in the ointment. CalPers and many other government retirement systems have, as long as I remember, been underfunded. Just double checked: CalPers currently has $180 billion in unfunded liabilities. They apparently have only 72% of the assets needed to fund current obligations. But, as I recall, we were and still are assured that we will never lose a dime of pension or healthcare.
*Surprising even then how two daughters leaving frees up the budget.
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