Insights, education and resources for serving diverse employees

Support for the financial and retirement planning needs of your diverse participants.

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Diverse segments to consider

Asian | Black | Hispanic | LGBTQ+ | Rural | Women and retirement

Meeting the needs of all of your participants is important. There are spoken needs but also unspoken needs that can be ingrained in a culture. We've developed support and solutions to meet various consumer segments where they are and to help improve their chances of retirement success.

Resources and capabilities

Solutions Center support
  • Retirement Specialist capabilities
    • Bilingual staffing (English/Spanish)
  • 300+ languages available
    • Expanded language capabilities via Lionbridge AI

Digital and print offerings
  • Print materials offering a variety of educational content, including fliers, plan highlights and booklets; we work with you to determine your language resource needs
  • Digital experiences are available in Spanish
    • Virtual Benefit Fairs
    • Plan participant website (custom website translations may require additional fees) 
  • Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) compliance
    • Our content is designed to be inclusive and accessible for all, following ADA requirements
  • Virtual meeting translation
    • Microsoft Teams closed captioning (cc) translates the speaker’s language into the preferred language onscreen

Cultural understanding and reach
  • In-language and culturally relevant webinars live and on demand
    • Educating and addressing cultural needs regarding financial planning
  • Social media influencers, videos and podcasts
    • Engaging with communities in authentic ways

Understanding the unique needs of diverse segments

Recent demographic research reveals details that can boost understanding and lead to unique approaches to meet varying needs.

Asian segment

  • Asian Americans have diverse cultural backgrounds affecting financial behaviors.1
  • High educational attainment and entrepreneurial spirit impact retirement planning.1
  • The Asian population accounts for about 7% of U.S. population, reaching more than 24 million in 2022.2
  • Chinese Americans are the largest Asian origin group in the U.S., constituting 19% of the Asian population, or 4.7 million people.3
  • The next two largest origin groups are Indian Americans, who account for 20% of the total (4.8 million people),4 and Filipinos, who account for 17% (or 4.1 million people).5
  • Asian Americans have the highest median household income compared with all U.S. households.6
As Asian woman shows her retirement-age participants some printed materials that have been translated into their language.

Black segment

  • Black Americans face unique financial challenges due to historical disparities and systemic racism.7
  • Community support and empowerment are essential for financial well-being.7
  • Health disparities are a retirement-readiness consideration regarding health care costs.8
  • The Black population makes up roughly 14.4% of the U.S. population.9
  • Among Black workers, 71% reported lower confidence in being able to financially support their financial long-term goals in 2022, compared to 77% in 2021.10

Hispanic segment

A Hispanic couple sips coffee at their porch table, reading some materials on a tablet computer.
  • Hispanics represent a growing demographic in the U.S., with 62.5 million making up 19.5% of the U.S. population, and significant purchasing power.11
  • Culturally, family plays a central role, influencing financial decisions and retirement planning, with many willing to put themselves in retirement uncertainty to help family and friends.12
  • Longevity is 1.5 years longer and used to be longer pre-Covid.13
  • Business ownership is up 34% over last decade.13
  • Median household income grew 25% (2013-2021).14
  • Hispanics have the lowest retirement account ownership of all ethnic segments at 26%.15

LGBTQ+ segment

  • LGBTQ+ individuals face unique financial challenges, including legal disparities.16
  • Inclusive financial services are crucial for this community.16
  • LGBTQ+ individuals tend to live in high-cost-of-living areas.17
  • 7.1% of U.S. population identifies as LGBTQ+, up from 5.6% in 2021.18
  • Reports estimate there are around 3 million LGBTQ+ adults over age 50 in the U.S.; by 2030, this population is expected to grow to around 7 million.19
  • Overall, same-sex married couples had a higher median household income than opposite-sex married couples: $107,200 and $96,930, respectively.20
  • Because members of the LGBTQ+ population are less likely to feel accepted by their family, they’re 11% more likely to say they’ve had to chart their own path.21

Rural segment

  • Rural communities often lack access to financial resources and education.22
  • Given rural land area takes up 97% of U.S. land area, this group is inherently diverse unto themselves, making it hard to lock in a single “rural” message.23
  • This segment tends to be poorer and their populations are older than in other parts of the United States because of rural flight, declining infrastructure and fewer economic prospects.24
  • Rural doesn’t always mean farmer; farming isn’t even among the top 3 jobs in rural areas.25

Women and retirement

  • Women tend to live longer than men and face unique financial challenges in retirement.26
  • Historic gender pay gaps impact retirement savings.27
  • Women are more likely to be the provider and the recipient of long-term caregiving.28
A contented retirement-age woman relaxes on her sofa and smiles confidently.
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1 “Diverse Culture and Shared Experiences Shape Asian American Identities,” N. Ruiz, L. Noe Bustamante, S. Shah for Pew Research Center, pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2023/05/08/diverse-cultures-and-shared-experiences-shape-asian-american-identities/ (May 8, 2023).

2 "Asian Americans: A Survey Data Snapshot," pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2024/08/06/asian-americans-a-survey-data-snapshot/ (Aug. 6, 2024).

3 “Chinese Americans: A Survey Data Snapshot,” pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2024/08/06/chinese-americans-a-survey-data-snapshot/ (Aug. 6, 2024).

4 “Indian Americans: A Survey Data Snapshot,” pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2024/08/06/indian-americans-a-survey-data-snapshot/ (Aug. 6, 2024).

5 “Filipino Americans: A Survey Data Snapshot,” pewresearch.org/race-and-ethnicity/2024/08/06/filipino-americans-a-survey-data-snapshot/ (Aug. 6, 2024).

6 “United States Median Household Income By Race,” Neilsberg Research, neilsberg.com/insights/united-states-median-household-income-by-race/ (Jan. 4, 2024).

7 “The state of Black residents: The relevance of place to racial equity and outcomes,” J. Julien, D. Pinder, S. Stewart III, D. Williams, N. Yancy for McKinsey Institute for Black Mobility, mckinsey.com/bem/our-insights/the-state-of-black-residents-the-relevance-of-place-to-racial-equity-and-outcomes (Feb. 1, 2024).

8 “The economic impact of closing the racial wealth gap,” N. Noel, D. Pinder, S. Stewart, J. Wright for McKinsey Institute for Black Mobility, mckinsey.com/industries/public-sector/our-insights/the-economic-impact-of-closing-the-racial-wealth-gap (Aug. 13, 2019).

9 “Facts About the U.S. Black Population,” M. Moslimani, C. Tamir, A. Budiman, L. Noe-Bustamante, L. Mora, Pew Research Center, pewresearch.org/social-trends/fact-sheet/facts-about-the-us-black-population/ (Jan.18, 2024).

10 “BIPOC Workers Worked With Financial Professionals Less in 2022,” Noah Zuss for PLANSPONSOR, plansponsor.com/bipoc-workers-worked-financial-professionals-less-2022/ (Sept. 30, 2022).

11 “New Estimates Highlight Differences in Growth Between the U.S. Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Populations,” census.gov/newsroom/press-releases/2024/population-estimates-characteristics.html (June 27, 2024).

12 “Individual and Social Factors that Influence Employment and Retirement Transitions,” National Library of Medicine, ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK588546/ (2022).

13 “Key Data on Health and Health Care by Race and Ethnicity,” N. Ndugga, L. Hill, S. Artiga, ff.org/key-data-on-health-and-health-care-by-race-and-ethnicity/?entry=executive-summary-key-takeaways (accessed Nov. 27, 2023). “State of Latino Entrepreneurship,” Stanford Graduate School of Business (2022).

14 “Median income of Hispanic private households in the United States from 1990 to 2022,” statista.com/statistics/203301/median-income-of-hispanic-households-in-the-us/ (accessed Aug. 23, 2024).

15 “Disparities in Wealth by Race and Ethnicity in the 20169 Survey of Consuumer Finances,” N. Bhutta, A. Chang, L. Dettling, J. Hsu, with assistance from J. Hewitt, federalreserve.gov/econres/notes/feds-notes/disparities-in-wealth-by-race-and-ethnicity-in-the-2019-survey-of-consumer-finances-20200928.html (Spet. 28, 2020).

16 “NEW DATA: LGBTQ+ Community Continues to Face Financial Challenges Compared to Peers,” Laurel Powell, hrc.org/press-releases/new-data-lgbtq-community-continues-to-face-financial-challenges-compared-to-peers (April 3, 2024).

17 “Why Are There Gaps in LGBTQ+ Homeownership?” K. Visalli, A. Mehrotra, M. Pruitt, T. Hill, urban.org/research/publication/why-are-there-gaps-lgbtq-homeownership (Feb. 28, 2024).

18 “’You are seen’: A record 7.1% of US Adults now identify as LGBTQ, new poll shows,” Susan Miller for USA Today, usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2022/02/17/record-number-us-adults-identify-lgbtq/6802482001/ (Feb. 17. 2022).

19 “LGBTQ+ Aging,” sageusa.org/your-rights-resources/lgbt-aging/ (accessed Aug. 23, 2024).

20 “Census Bureau Implements Improved Measurement of Same-Sex Couples,” Brian Glassman, census.gov/library/stories/2020/09/same-sex-married-couples-have-higher-income-than-opposite-sex-married-couples.html (Sept. 17, 2020).

21 “Diverse Viewpoints: Exploring Wealth in the LGBTQ+ Community,” mlaem.fs.ml.com/content/dam/ML/Articles/pdf/ML-LGBT-WP.pdf (April 2024).

22 “The Invisible Rural Access Barrier,” S. Bornstein, C. Barstow, Al. Myers, A. Noriega, C. Steiner, ssir.org/articles/entry/the_invisible_rural_access_barrier (April 27, 2023).

23 “One in Five Americans Live in Rural Areas,” census.gov/library/stories/2017/08/rural-america.html (Aug. 9, 2017).

24 “Rural areas in the United States,” wikipedia.org/wiki/Rural_areas_in_the_United_States (accessed Aug. 22, 2024).

25 “Beyond the Farm: Rural Industry Workers in America,” Lynda Laughlin, census.gov/newsroom/blogs/random-samplings/2016/12/beyond_the_farm_rur.html (Dec. 8, 2016).

26 “Women and Retirement: When They Retire, How They Plan, and Where Helo Is Needed,” ncoa.org/article/women-and-retirement-when-they-retire-how-they-plan-and-where-help-is-needed/ (March 22, 2022).

27 “The Gender Pay Gap and Its Effect on Women’s Retirement Savings,” gao.gov/blog/gender-pay-gap-and-its-effect-womens-retirement-savings (March 24, 2021).

28 “How the Gender Pay Gap Affects Women’s Retirement,” Kate Statler, money.usnews.com/money/retirement/articles/how-the-gender-pay-gap-affects-womens-retirement (July 29, 2024).