There are four core types of retirement savings plans:
• Social Security: Social Security is a mandatory retirement savings program. Each worker pays a Social Security payroll tax into a general government account called the Social Security trust fund. Using these funds, the Social Security trust fund pays out benefits to those workers who are currently retired.
• Defined benefit pension plans: Defined benefit pensions are contractually specified employment benefits, in which the employer promises to pay the employee a fixed annuity after retirement. The magnitude of the annuity is adjusted to reflect years of service at the employer and the level of the employee's salary.
• Defined contribution pension plans: Defined contribution pensions are individual accounts that are owned and controlled by the employee. In most cases, the employee decides how much to contribute to these accounts, and most employers match these contributions. These accounts are commonly referred to as 401(k) accounts.
• Individual Retirement Accounts (IRA): IRAs are retirement savings accounts that anyone can set up; they are usually not sponsored by a person's employer. If an individual does not contribute to her employer's defined contribution savings plan, then she can use an IRA to save for retirement.
A-head: INVESTMENT ACCOUNTS
Concept: Retirement savings plans