The influence of automatic enrollment, catch-up, and IRA contributions on 401(k) accumulations at retirement.

• The Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) and the Investment Company Institute (ICI) have collaborated to develop the EBRI/ICI 401(k) Accumulation Projection Model. This model examines how 401(k) assets might contribute to retirement income for future retirees based on decisions workers make throughout their careers and finds that the median replacement rate from 401(k) accumulations depends primarily on whether current participants will continue to work for employers sponsoring 401(k) plans. For example, the lowest income quartile participants turning 65 between 2030 and 2039 are simulated to produce a median replacement rate of 25 percent if future coverage is only a random occurrence but 51 percent if each subsequent job is covered by a 401(k) plan. The highest income quartile for that generation has a similar disparity: a 30 percent replacement ratio in the non-continuous coverage situation and 67 percent if coverage is continuous.