Your Retirement Benefit Is Probably Fine, Most Workers Just Never Set It Up

Employees trust the financial guidance their employers provide but remain deeply uncertain about their own retirements, according to HR Dive reporting on a survey from NFP. The firm found 89% of employees trusted employer-provided financial advisors, yet 69% said they were unsure they could retire comfortably. At Metaintro, we track roughly 50 million job postings, and one of the most valuable and most ignored parts of any job is its retirement benefit. The striking finding here is that the problem is not distrust, it is that people do not engage. That makes it fixable, and this guide is a practical checklist for activating a benefit you probably already have.

What Did the Survey Actually Find?

A clear disconnect between how much workers trust their retirement resources and how confident they feel about retiring.

Trust is high. NFP found 89% of employees trusted employer-provided financial advisors, and 62% found one-on-one meetings with financial professionals especially helpful. People believe in the resource.

Confidence is low. Despite that trust, 69% said they were unsure they could retire comfortably, and 24% believed they lacked sufficient money to invest or did not earn enough to do so. The worry is real even where the trust exists.

The diagnosis is the key. NFP said engagement is the main barrier to retirement readiness, rather than trust. People are not avoiding these resources because they doubt them, they simply are not using them, often held back by concerns about fees or uncertainty about the value a conversation provides.

The most hopeful number seals it. 84% said they would consider working with an advisor if given the opportunity. The interest is there, the trust is there, and the gap is simply the step of actually engaging, which is exactly the step you can control.

Why Is Engagement the Real Barrier?

Because the obstacles that stop people are practical and psychological, not a lack of belief in the benefit.

The first barrier is a sense of not having enough to bother. With 24% feeling they lack money to invest, many assume the resource is not for people in their situation. That assumption is usually wrong, since advisors help most precisely where money is tight and every decision matters, but the feeling keeps people away.

The second barrier is fear of hidden costs. NFP noted that concerns about incurring fees hold workers back. Many employer-provided resources are free to the employee, so this fear often blocks people from a benefit that would cost them nothing to use.

The third barrier is doubt about value. General uncertainty about what an advisor conversation actually provides is a documented deterrent. People do not engage because they cannot picture the benefit, which is a chicken-and-egg problem the first conversation usually resolves.

The encouraging counterpoint is what happens once people cross that line. NFP's wealth management leader said employees who engage with a financial professional, even once, make more confident decisions going forward, and that first conversation often changes how they approach their financial future. The barrier is real but low, and stepping over it changes things.

Why Does This Matter So Much Right Now?

Because the retirement readiness gap is large and growing, which makes activating your benefit more urgent, not less.

The topline is sobering. NFP said a growing share of US workers is off track for retirement, and a 2025 Transamerica Institute survey found 68% of US workers expect to reach retirement age without enough money saved, a figure NFP suggested may be even higher in 2026.

The reliance on limited sources is worrying. Among workers aged 55 or older, 41% expected Social Security to be their primary retirement income source. Depending heavily on one source late in a career is exactly the situation better planning is designed to improve.

There is also a perception gap between workers and employers. A 2024 PNC Bank report found fewer than half of surveyed workers believed they were prepared for retirement, compared to 78% of employers. Employers often think their people are more ready than the people themselves feel.

The takeaway is that the stakes are high and rising. With a majority of workers off track and expecting a shortfall, the case for using every available resource, especially free, trusted employer ones, is strong. Doing nothing is the expensive option.

How Do You Close Your Own Engagement Gap?

Here is the concrete checklist for activating a retirement benefit you likely already have and trust.

Find out what your employer actually offers. Most people underestimate their benefits, and NFP noted declining awareness of employer-sponsored resources. Check with HR for what is available, including retirement plans, matching contributions, and access to financial advisors, because you cannot use a benefit you do not know exists.

Book the first conversation, since that is the pivotal step. The research is clear that a single meeting shifts how people approach their finances, and 84% of workers say they would engage if given the chance. If one-on-one meetings are offered, and 62% found them especially helpful, schedule one rather than waiting until you feel ready.

Confirm the cost before you let fees deter you. Since fear of fees is a barrier, simply ask whether the employer-provided advisor is free to you, as many are. Removing that uncertainty often removes the main reason people hesitate.

Capture the employer match first of all. If your plan includes matching contributions, contributing at least enough to get the full match is the highest-return move available, because it is free money you forfeit by not participating. This is the single most common benefit left on the table.

Do not disqualify yourself for having little to invest. The 24% who feel they lack money to invest are often exactly the people who benefit most from guidance, because small, early, well-directed contributions compound over time. Engaging when money is tight is more valuable, not less.

Why Do People Trust the Resource but Still Not Use It?

This is the psychological puzzle at the heart of the survey, and understanding it helps you overcome it in yourself.

Part of it is that trust and action are different things. Believing an advisor is trustworthy, as 89% do, does not automatically produce the act of booking a meeting. Many good intentions stall at the step of actually scheduling, which is why the gap persists despite the high trust.

Part of it is avoidance of a stressful topic. Retirement planning forces people to confront uncertainty about the future and their own finances, and with 69% already unsure they can retire comfortably, avoidance is an understandable if counterproductive coping response. Not looking feels safer than looking, even though looking is what helps.

Part of it is the belief that engagement is only for the wealthy. The 24% who feel they lack money to invest may assume advisors are for people with substantial assets. That assumption is backwards, since guidance matters most when resources are limited and mistakes are costly, but the perception keeps people away from help they would benefit from.

Recognising these patterns in yourself is the practical unlock. If you trust the resource but keep not using it, the obstacle is almost certainly one of these three, avoidance, the scheduling gap, or the wealthy-only myth, rather than any real problem with the benefit. Naming which one is holding you back is often enough to move past it, because each dissolves under a moment of honest examination.

What Should You Actually Ask in That First Meeting?

Making the meeting productive is easy if you go in with the right questions, and knowing them removes the hesitation.

Ask whether you are on track and what the target is. Given that 69% are unsure they can retire comfortably, the most valuable thing an advisor provides is a concrete assessment of where you stand and what number you are aiming for. Replacing vague anxiety with a specific target is itself a large step forward.

Ask about the employer match and how to maximise it. Confirm exactly how your plan's matching works and whether you are capturing all of it, since this is the clearest source of free value in most plans.

Ask about compound savings and time. Employers are advised to explain the importance of compound savings, and understanding how starting earlier and contributing consistently multiplies your outcome is what motivates sustained action. The earlier you grasp this, the more it works for you.

Ask about healthcare and post-retirement income. The reality of retirement includes planning for healthcare expenses and setting expectations around annual income after retirement, which are exactly the areas people underestimate. Getting realistic figures on both turns a hazy future into a plan you can act on.

The point is that you do not need financial expertise to benefit, you need to show up with a few honest questions. The advisor supplies the expertise, and the research shows even one such conversation changes how people manage their financial future.

What Does This Mean for Your Career and Finances?

The broader lesson is that unused benefits are lost compensation, and retirement resources are among the most valuable and most neglected.

Treat benefits as part of your pay. A retirement plan with a match, plus access to trusted advisors, has real monetary value that you forfeit by not engaging. Since 89% of workers already trust these resources, the only thing standing between you and that value is the step of using them.

Weigh benefits when comparing jobs. Retirement provisions, match rates and financial-wellness support vary widely between employers and are a genuine part of total compensation. Factoring them into how you evaluate offers, alongside salary, is a smarter way to compare jobs than looking at base pay alone.

Act early because time is the biggest variable. With a majority of workers expecting a shortfall and many older workers over-reliant on Social Security, the advantage goes to those who engage sooner. Every year of compound growth you capture by starting now is difficult to recover later.

Build a simple annual habit around it. One conversation is the pivotal first step, but the workers who stay on track treat engagement as recurring, not one-time. A brief annual review, checking your contribution rate, confirming you still capture the full match, and updating your plan as your income changes, keeps a benefit working over the years rather than letting it drift after a single setup.

Remember the core insight. The barrier is engagement, not trust or even necessarily income. That is empowering, because engagement is entirely within your control. Booking one conversation, confirming your match, and asking a few honest questions is a small effort that the research shows meaningfully improves how confidently you handle your financial future. Your retirement benefit is probably fine. The task is simply to set it up, and then to check on it once a year so the value keeps compounding while you get on with everything else.

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People Also Asked

Q: Do employees actually trust their workplace financial advisors?

A: Overwhelmingly yes. The survey found 89% of employees trusted employer-provided financial advisors and 62% found one-on-one meetings especially helpful. The barrier to retirement readiness is engagement, not trust.

Q: Why do so many workers feel unprepared for retirement?

A: A majority are genuinely off track. 69% are unsure they can retire comfortably, and a 2025 survey found 68% of workers expect to reach retirement age without enough saved. Under-using available planning resources is a major, fixable part of the problem.

Q: How do I make the most of my retirement benefit?

A: Find out what your employer offers, book the first advisor meeting since even one changes how people plan, confirm whether it is free, capture your full employer match, and do not disqualify yourself for having little to invest. 84% of workers would engage if given the chance.

Wondering what you should earn? Metaintro helps you weigh full compensation, including benefits, when comparing roles, so you never leave value on the table. Create your free profile and see your options.