He presumes they would be younger, more inclined to take an active role in overseeing their retirement kitties and likely to switch jobs during their careers. Trustee Clifford A. Cutchins III of Virginia Beach, a retired bank chairman, acknowledged the generational component of the defined-contribution debate. But trustee Elise L. Emanuel of Williamsburg, a teacher, likes things the way the are, largely because a defined-benefits system frees beneficiaries of having to make decisions on matters about which they may be ignorant, unsophisticated or uninterested. Therefore, the return is not as high. About five states, among them, West Virginia, offer public workers some form of defined contribution.
People have to understand the risk, and that's part of the issue.