September 05, 2009
--- As the nation turns its attention to the three-day Labor Day weekend, the White House is talking about retirement security. ---
With 401(k) Day less than a week away (September 11), and the Labor Day weekend upon us, President Obama's weekly radio address was titled "Labor Day and Fair Rewards for Hard Work." Along with that address, the President and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner announced "new steps to make it easier for American families to save for retirement."
And while health-care reform and concerns about looming federal budget deficits seem to be consuming most of the “oxygen” in the nation's capital, the White House noted that the initiatives unveiled Saturday “will complement the president’s major legislative proposals to boost participation in IRAs and match retirement savings.”
Specifically, the announcement said that the Department of the Treasury will:
- expand opportunities for automatic enrollment in 401(k) and other retirement savings plans;
- make it easier for more than 100 million families to save a portion or all of their tax refunds;
- enable workers to convert their unused vacation or other similar leave into additional retirement savings; and
- help workers and their employers better understand the available options for tax-favored retirement saving through clear, easy-to-understand language.