As an employee of The Coca-Cola Company here in Atlanta, Georgia, you may be eligible to contribute to the company’s 401k. A 401k is a company-sponsored retirement savings plan. Typically, employees who are eligible to contribute make pre-tax contributions to their Coca-Cola Company 401k. 

You continue to contribute up until you retire, and your contributions are invested in funds that you choose based on your savings goals and retirement timeline. Then, you take Required Minimum Distributions (RMDs) from the account after you enter retirement and pay taxes on the income you withdraw. 

Every company’s 401k plan is a little bit different, but there are a few key things to know about The Coca-Cola Company’s plan:

• Not all employees are eligible to contribute
• TCCC has specific default elections for their 401k
• There are contribution limits
• TCCC offers a company match

Let’s dig into what you can expect from your 401k plan, and how to leverage your savings for an ideal retirement. 

Who is Eligible to Join the Coca-Cola Company 401k?

To enroll in TCCC’s 401k plan, you must be a United States citizen or a permanent resident who has worked for Coca-Cola for 30 consecutive days or more. However, there are a few exceptions to this. You aren’t eligible to enroll if you are:

• Already enrolled in a different defined compensation plan
• A leased employee
• Covered by a “collective bargaining agreement”

Essentially, TCCC only allows workers who are full or part-time W2 employees who have worked for 30 days straight to enroll. Contractors and employees who are “leased” by Coca-Cola from another entity aren’t eligible. 

How to Enroll and Default Elections

The good news is that enrolling in the Coca-Cola Company 401k is easy – because they do it for you! All eligible employees are automatically enrolled in the plan and are given an enrollment deadline to select their contributions. Most people choose to actively enroll and select their options before their enrollment deadline. This puts you in the driver’s seat of your 401k and can help you to make elections that align with your retirement goals. 

However, if you choose to let TCCC auto-enroll you in their 401k, here are the contributions they set up for you:

When you first are auto-enrolled, TCCC will contribute 3% of your salary to your 401k. Then, annually, TCC will increase your contributions by 1% until you reach a 6% total annual contribution. Remember, you can change your enrollment at any time. 

Understanding Your Company Match

TCCC matches 100% of your contributions up to 1% of your salary. After that, their match is a smaller percentage that’s dependent on your total contribution. Let’s take a look at this chart to understand how it works:

You ContributeTCCC Contributes1%1%2%1.5%3%2%4%2.5%5%3%6%3.5%

Ideally, you’ll be able to contribute up to the maximum company match to take advantage of the funds your employer is willing to contribute to your retirement. If you skip this, you’re leaving money on the table. This can be a problem because, when it comes to saving for retirement, every little bit you’re able to put away counts!

What Can You Contribute?

Although TCCC doesn’t have any company-imposed contribution limits, the federal government limits how much you can contribute to your 401k each year. In 2020, the contribution limit is $19,500 per year if you’re under age 50. If you’re over age 50, you get to contribute an extra $6,500 annually as a “catch up” contribution as you get closer to retirement. The employer match doesn’t count toward this limit – so it’s truly an “extra” contribution to your retirement savings.