Fidelity 2026 Workplace Outlook: Pay Raises, Hybrid Work & The #1 Perk Employees Crave

Fidelity Investments unveiled its Second Annual Workplace Outlook report on 9 April 2026, offering plan sponsors a data-rich roadmap for building more competitive benefits programs in a turbulent labor market. WHAT THE 2026 FIDELITY WORKPLACE OUTLOOK REVEALS Drawing on behavior from more than 25 million active plan participants and 28,000 employer relationships, the study distills eleven trends reshaping plan design: • Deeper engagement strategies that nudge workers to maximize employer match dollars. • Growing use of retirement plans as an on-ramp for emergency savings, accelerated by SECURE 2.0 provisions. • Rising demand for retirement-income solutions, with roughly one in four U.S. employees now nearing retirement age. • Sharper focus on personalized investment menus, including the continued dominance of target-date funds and the migration toward lower-cost collective investment trusts. • Expanded adoption of managed accounts and outsourced CIO models for defined-benefit plans. • Movement toward holistic, single-provider ecosystems that bundle health, wealth and protection benefits. WHY IT MATTERS TO EMPLOYERS 1. Talent retention: Organizations that layer emergency-savings features on top of core 401(k) plans report higher participation and lower turnover, according to Fidelity’s analytics. 2. Cost control: Collective investment trusts trimmed investment-management fees by up to 30 percent versus comparable mutual-fund lineups last year, freeing budget for richer match formulas. 3. Regulatory agility: SECURE 2.0’s student-loan matching and penalty-free hardship withdrawal rules demand real-time plan updates; Fidelity’s report outlines turnkey playbooks that shorten implementation cycles. 4. Multi-generational appeal: Gen Z prioritizes day-one liquidity, Millennials want debt-management tools, while Boomers value guaranteed income streams. The Outlook details benefit bundles that resonate with each cohort. MACRO BACKDROP Market volatility, persistent inflation and shifting tax brackets have pushed financial-wellness programs from “nice-to-have” to strategic necessity. Assets under administration at Fidelity now total $18 trillion, giving the firm an unparalleled view into how savers adjust contributions, asset allocations and withdrawal patterns through economic cycles. ACTION STEPS FOR HR AND BENEFITS TEAMS • Benchmark plan features against the 11 trends and identify quick wins—such as auto-enrolling at 6 percent instead of 3. • Leverage Roth and after-tax options to prepare employees for the scheduled 2026 sunset of Tax Cuts and Jobs Act brackets. • Pilot side-car emergency-savings accounts linked to payroll to boost overall financial resilience. • Promote retirement-income products within target-date funds to smooth the transition from accumulation to decumulation. BOTTOM LINE With fresh insight into participant behavior and regulatory tailwinds, Fidelity’s 2026 Workplace Outlook serves as an essential playbook for employers intent on fortifying employee financial well-being while safeguarding their own bottom line. Companies that act now can convert benefits innovation into a durable talent advantage in 2026 and beyond.