Millennials appear to be picking up the savings pace, according to a new survey.
According to the latest Bank of America Merrill Lynch 401(k) Wellness Scorecard, 64% more employees in this generation started contributing to a 401(k) account in 2014 compared with 2013.
Some of that might be attributable to the continued expansion of automatic increase designs. The number of plans that have added automatic enrollment increased 8% from 2013 to 2014, and in total, 47.5% of plans now offer this feature, according to the report.
During 2014, 64% of 401(k) plans combined auto enrollment and auto escalation, a 25% increase from the previous year. BAML said that this past year saw 32% higher participation rates for plans offering auto enrollment and 46% more employees scheduling automatic increases.
In 2014, 78% of active 401(k) participants who made a change to their plan made a positive one, by either starting or increasing their contributions. Compared with 2013, the number of participants who contributed to their 401(k) account increased by 18%.
