Americans recently celebrated Labor Day, a day meant to commemorate our nation’s workers.

At IPERS, we’re committed to supporting a strong workforce in Iowa. We especially recognize the more than 400,000 current and retired public sector employees we represent, including the people who teach our children, police officers who ensure our safety and the employees who make every level of government operate each day. One in 10 Iowans is an IPERS member.

IPERS is a defined benefit plan, making it different from traditional 401(k)-style plans. Defined benefit plans provide unique benefits:

1. The retirement benefit payment is guaranteed for life. A 401(k) may not generate enough money to support the recipient until their death.

2. IPERS retirement benefit payments are based on a formula and are not dependent on the idiosyncrasies of the stock market.

3. IPERS’ skilled investment team invests member and employer contributions to generate revenue to pay retirement benefits. IPERS’ members don’t have to make complicated investment decisions. 401(k) recipients assume all the investment risk. In a defined benefit plan, a member’s investment risk is eliminated.

When the Iowa Legislature created IPERS in 1953, it did so to offer an attractive benefit that would draw and retain qualified public workers. Nearly 75 years later, IPERS remains an important workforce recruitment tool and economic engine. In FY2024, IPERS paid more than $2.9 billion in benefits, including $2.7 billion to retirees living here in Iowa. Benefit recipients spend that money locally on food, entertainment, healthcare and housing.

IPERS’ strong financial position means it’s able to pay benefits now and in the future. With a trust valued at approximately $46 billion, and a ratio of assets to liabilities that exceeds 90%, IPERS is one of the most financially viable retirement systems in the nation.

IPERS is proud to serve Iowa’s public workers and administer the retirement program that promises what a 401(k) cannot: secure, reliable retirement benefit payments. Learn more about IPERS at https://ipers.org/ipers-did-you-know.

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IPERS is the state’s largest public retirement system, serving more than 400,000 current and former members. Greg Samorajski has served as the organization’s CEO since 2020.