Without a workplace 401(k) plan, many investors would not be saving for retirement at all, according to a new study from the mutual fund and financial services group Fidelity Investments.

Fifty-five percent of current workplace savings plan participants said they would not be saving for retirement if not for their 401(k) plan, according to survey results. The results also showed that about one in five respondents who were currently enrolled in workplace 401(k) plans also reported that they had no other retirement savings plan set up. Fidelity also included former workplace 401(k) investors in the 1,000 individuals interviewed.

The vast majority of those interviewed, 92 percent, said that it was important or very important not to lose out on dollar-matching plans offered by the companies they worked for. This was the driving force to sign up in the first place. And almost as many respondents (90 percent) said they believed that the plan was a good tax-deferred way to save.

Many respondents added that if they could they would contribute more to their workplace retirement plans, but that tough economic times keeps them from doing so.

In other 401(k) news:
Resist the lure of borrowing against yourself with a 401(k) loan.

Fidelity Survey Finds Majority of Workplace Investors Would Not Be Saving For Retirement Without a 401(K) Plan [Fidelity Investments]