Viewpoints from John Hancock Retirement
As one of America’s most trusted financial brands, we believe everyone deserves the tools and guidance to achieve financial wellness and retire with confidence. We’ve made retirement plans work for nearly 50 years, and today we’re one of the largest full-service providers in the industry.
At John Hancock, we make retirement plans work.
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Retirement plans in June continued to reflect the ups and downs of the economy
Since the pandemic kicked off market volatility in February, the economy has been on a rollercoaster ride. We continue to watch the actions our retirement plan participants are taking to gauge the impact the changing economy is having on them, so we can try to help them with timely and targeted engagement.
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Actions taken by retirement plan participants reflect May’s mixed bag of news
In May, we saw that most participants are staying the course. But those who’ve been affected by the pandemic are finding some relief in the CARES Act.
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Evidence-based ideas for a 401(k) plan design upgrade
John Hancock’s 401(k) data reveals plan-level progress under way and sets clear direction for future improvements.
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IRS relaxes rules for obtaining spousal consent for 2020
IRS Notice 2020-42 creates a remote notarization process for retirement plan transactions that require spousal consent. This helps solve problems related to social distancing and COVID-19.
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Unions and Taft-Hartley retirement plans show their value in tough times
The COVID-19 pandemic has brought an era of constant change. Initial concern about market volatility in the early days of the pandemic in the United States gave way as concern about illness and job security took over. Since the CARES Act took effect, retirement plan participants have had access to some temporary financial relief. We took a look at our Taft-Hartley retirement plan participants to see what actions union members are taking amid the uncertainty.
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How 401(k) participants responded to the CARES Act and market volatility in April
COVID-19 has inflicted a good deal of financial damage, and many Americans are starting to look to their retirement plans for relief. Our data shows the actions they're taking and how those compare with the old normal.
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EBSA provides disaster relief for retirement plans
On April 29, the EBSA, a branch of the DOL, issued EBSA Disaster Relief Notice 2020-01, offering relief for plan sponsors and easing certain provisions for companies affected by COVID-19.
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The CARES Act and defined benefit plans: two kinds of relief
The CARES Act addresses the cash liquidity concerns of defined benefit plan sponsors by temporarily loosening funding rules. Here’s a look at the two specific pension provisions.
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Retirement plan professionals: don’t forget about the FFCRA
The FFCRA requires certain employers to provide paid time off for employees who meet specific COVID-19-related criteria, and it contains two provisions of which plan sponsors should be aware.
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The market moved in March, but 401(k) participants didn’t
The stock market swung up and down wildly in February and March 2020. As financial professionals, you spend a lot of time teaching investors not to react emotionally when the market goes crazy. And it looks like people have been paying attention—for now.
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