A lot of times the employers are capped on their own plans at a percentage rate that matches their employee’s participating. So matching is often in their best interest, esp at smaller companies.
But, easier version is this is a perk, not your base salary. They are paying you with legal tender and there are freedoms associated to that. There is no such thing for perks.
You aren’t entitled to make the administration choices for something they are gifting you.
I actually do not understand this. Could you please explain more? What does an employer being "capped on their own plans" mean?
> But, easier version is this is a perk, not your base salary
When I make a decision on a job offer, the 401k match, health insurance premium, free lunch and snacks etc. all factor in and they're all worth a certain amount of money. Money is money and how it's labeled, "perk" or "base", is irrelevant. If my employer ends 401k matching, I'll treat it as a pay cut mentally.
My ultimate "fantasy" is to eliminate 401k altogether and instead let everyone contribute whatever the 401k annual limit is to an IRA. The employer can simply add matching funds to your IRA and you're free to have your retirement accounts anywhere you please.
What's special about 401k matching that requires the employer to choose plans? My employer doesn't force me to have a checking account with a particular bank they chose if I want to receive my salary. They should be able to match contributions to any account anywhere.