WASHINGTON, DC June 15, 2011
Bill Wiatrowski, an Associate Commissioner of the U. S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) will present a workshop on “The Morphing of Retirement Benefits—BLS Data Speak” at the upcoming Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) 2011 Annual Conference and Exposition in Las Vegas, on Monday, June 27.
Attendees will see how their retirement plans stack up against the latest trends and will learn to easily access the most current data that track where employment-based retirement plans are today. HR professionals will be able to use these data to design their own competitive plan features for the future.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics has tracked retirement plan changes over 30 years. The most recent results are found in the “National Compensation Survey: Employee Benefits in the United States, March 2010” and the “National Compensation Survey: Health and Retirement Plan Provisions in Private Industry, 2009”. Recent data point to continued plan changes, as defined benefit plans add defined contribution-like features such as cash accounts and lump sum payments, while defined contribution plans add defined benefit-like features such as automatic enrollment and annuity payments. New data on frozen defined benefit plans, Roth 401(k)s, and plans with no employer contributions help define where retirement plans are today.
ABOUT THE BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS
The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor is the principal Federal agency responsible for measuring labor market activity, working conditions, and price changes in the economy. Its mission is to collect, analyze, and disseminate essential economic information to support public and private decision-making. As an independent statistical agency, BLS serves its diverse user communities by providing products and services that are objective, timely, accurate, and relevant.
ABOUT THE NATIONAL COMPENSATION SURVEY
The National Compensation Survey (NCS) is an on-going comprehensive employer-based survey of approximately 14,600 establishments conducted by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. NCS is an umbrella program that produces data on several topics including benefits, wages, and compensation cost trends. One of its outputs—the Employment Cost Index (ECI) — is a principal federal economic indicator. The ECI measures the percent change in the cost of wages and benefits. Another output is the Employer Costs for Employee Compensation (ECEC). The ECEC provides costs for wages and individual benefits on a cost per hour worked basis. In addition to the bulletins and websites mentioned in this release, the Compensation and Working Conditions Online Journal contains many short articles on various compensation topics including retirement benefits.
ABOUT BILL WIATROWSKI
Bill Wiatrowski heads up the BLS Office of Compensation and Working Conditions, which provides information on employee wages and benefits and work-related fatal injuries and non-fatal injuries and illnesses.
Mr. Wiatrowski graduated from Yale University and received a Masters of Business Administration degree from the George Washington University. He is the author of numerous articles on benefits, compensation, and safety and health issues and speaks on these topics before a wide variety of audiences.
For further information about Mr. Wiatrowski’s presentation or for any NCS data please contact the NCS information office at 202.691.6199 or NCSinfo {at} bls {dot} gov.
This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.