Northwest AGC Chapters Retirement Plan: What Are You Offering Your Employees?

NORTHWEST AGC CHAPTERS RETIREMENT PLAN:

What Are You Offering Your Employees?

By Grace Josten, NWPS Consultant

One of the many reasons why associations exist is to cultivate services and benefits for their members.

In this case, the Northwest chapters of AGC have combined efforts to offer a quality retirement and 401(k) plan exclusively for our members, and because it is specifically designed to meet the unique needs of the construction industry, this isn’t an ordinary off-the-shelf plan.

Open to all AGC member companies from the Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Alaska chapters, the association plan has over 6,000 participants from more than 120 employers, with more than $280 million in aggregate plan assets. Each AGC chapter in the Northwest region has staff and member seats on the Board of Trustees that oversees the Plan Trust. Trustees meet regularly along with the third-party administrators at Northwest Plan Services (NWPS) and investment advisors at Reliant Consulting and Research to deliver a superior and competitive program to our member companies and their employees.

Those employees know that a company offering them a good benefits package is a company that values its employees — a company worth staying on with long-term.

Employers know the competition for skilled workers is fierce, and must do what they can to retain their productive, dedicated, and trained workforce.

Companies also know that in order to be competitive, any business tax deductions are helpful (are you bidding prevailing wage and public works projects that require a bona fide benefits program? Did you know you can save on FICA, FUTA, and other payroll taxes by contributing fringe benefit money into a pension?) Anything that can be done to minimize the payroll tax burden improves a company’s cash flow.

Options for employers include 401(k) and Roth 401(k), Davis Bacon (prevailing wage), safe harbor, matching, and profitsharing contributions. Employers have the ability to award various classes of employees with different levels of profitsharing contributions and participants may take advantage of a multi-fund