Last week, the Financial Advisor Transitions blog discussed Wells Fargo's plan to stop matching 401(k) contributions for employees making more than $250,000. In a reversal, Wells Fargo announced that it is no longer planning to discontinue matching 401(k) contributions for employees earning more than $250,000. According to a report from AdvisorHub, Wells Fargo's announcement of the termination of 401(k) contributions caused internal protests at the bank.

AdvisorHub reported that Wells Fargo employees were caught off guard by the announced cuts. "The senior leaders at Wells Fargo Advisors were not aware that the change was coming, and we did not get a single ounce of communication framing the decision," AdvisorHub quoted one Wells Fargo Advisor as saying.

In addition to cutting 401(k) contributions for individuals earning more than $250,000, the plan also included additional 401(k) contributions for lower earning employees. However, Wells Fargo announced that it would continue to implement the part of the plan that called for a 1% contribution of annual compensation to 401(k) plans for employees earning less than $75,000.

Wells Fargo said that the bank "remain[s] committed to putting a greater emphasis on how we support our lower-paid employees through our compensation and benefits program, including through a new nondiscretionary base 401(k) Plan contribution."

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