Saving for retirement presents unique challenges to the health care industry. Despite 88% of health care employees reporting that they are saving for retirement, 48% say that debt is the reason they’re saving less than they need.
Employers can offer a number of solutions to help health care workers who cite debt as a primary challenge when saving for retirement, including:

• A holistic benefits package, including supplemental health benefits such as critical illness, accident coverage and hospital indemnity insurance.
• Personal, one-on-one guidance through a dedicated retirement consultant to discuss retirement goals and life circumstances to create a personalized plan for saving for retirement.

We talked with Anne Shiembob, Vice President, Retirement Plan Services at Lincoln Financial, about serving the retirement planning needs of the health care industry.

Q:  What are some challenges the health care industry faces when saving for retirement?

A: The health care industry attracts a diverse workforce from different ages, levels of education, backgrounds and more. With such a diverse workforce, and with employees in the health care industry often working long, varied and demanding hours providing patient care, offering a personalized, high-touch approach to retirement planning is critical to supporting the unique needs of each individual.

Whether that is discussing their personal goals, speaking the language they are most comfortable in or offering a virtual meeting at a time convenient to them, a retirement consultant can tailor the conversation to the individual, promoting more open conversations about goals and expectations. A recent Lincoln Financial study found 73% of health care workers who contribute to their workplace retirement plan are saving less than they think they need to save to be on track for retirement.

The median amount health care workers think they need to save to be on track is 15%, but the median amount health care workers are actually saving is 10%. Data from Lincoln Financial shows that employees who meet with a retirement consultant have a 2% higher median deferral rate than those who don’t. They are also two times more confident about retirement readiness.