Press Release

Aon Pooled Employer Plan Opens with its First Plan Sponsors in January

Issued by Aon plc

Dec. 3, 2020

Firm predicts half of U.S. employers will join pooled employer plans in a decade; creating higher performing, more efficient 401(k) plans for millions of Americans

CHICAGO, Dec. 3, 2020 -- Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm providing a broad range of risk, retirement and health solutions, will launch its pooled employer plan Jan. 1 after registering it with the U.S. Department of Labor today. Aon expects more than half of U.S. employers to merge their traditional 401(k)s into pooled employer plans during the next decade, according to a report.   

The Aon PEP will start the year with two employers in January and is scheduled to transition three additional clients through April. These initial employers are from a diverse mix of industries that include aerospace, chemical, music production, pediatric medicine and petroleum. Participants will benefit from higher performing, more efficient 401(k) plans.

"Based on overall value, we predict that many more employers will transition to PEPs in the coming years," said Paul Rangecroft, North America retirement practice leader for Aon. "The benefits of such a move – lower costs, reduced time commitment from corporate staff, improved governance and high-quality retirement planning options -- will be difficult to match in a single employer solution."

The combined scale in pooled employer plans will help beneficiaries lower plan costs, including record-keeping and investment management fees. Beneficiaries also will have easier access to investment tools and education services to better prepare for retirement.

From the employer perspective, pooled employer plans will reduce staff time dedicated to plan management, compliance and governance (i.e., elimination of many tasks such as government filings, plan audits, etc.). Pooled employer plans will also reduce fiduciary and litigation risks.

"The Aon PEP provides the efficiency and scale of a pooled plan, while maintaining individual employer autonomy to define matching and other contribution levels, and various key plan design features," said Rick Jones, partner for Aon's Retirement Solutions.

Aon leaders will host a webinar at 2 p.m. CT  Tuesday, Dec. 8, titled: "Pooled Employer Plans, SECURE 2.0, and the Future of Retirement Security," which will feature a policy discussion on how pooled employer plans will transform retirement. Prominent Washington, D.C. speakers include U.S. Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland; Payson Peabody, tax counsel for the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means; Preston Rutledge, founder and principal at Rutledge Policy Group and a former assistant secretary of labor, Employee Benefits Security Administration; and moderator Lynn D. Dudley, senior vice president, global retirement & compensation policy, American Benefits Council.

For more information about the Aon PEP, click here or email retirement@aon.com.

Editor's note: This press release has been issued by the company named above, not BenefitsLink. Reliance on information in this press release might be prudent only after an independent review of its accuracy, completeness, efficacy, and timeliness. Reference to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, service mark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not constitute or imply endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by BenefitsLink.