Plans with small employers typically have high fees as the cost to administer plans is roughly 30 bps/yr. If the plan is with Fidelity, Vanguard or other large provider, they sometimes offer self-directed options where the investor can take the money from the employer plan and directly manage the money, avoiding the management fees, in Fidelity, Vanguard, or similar directly.
I've had similar experiences and tried in vain to get the fees lower or add the self-directed option. Bad plan was costing me about $500 per year times number of years at employer ($4000/yr. when I left) but worth the match. Most decisions are made by committees made up of people who do not use this investment, not their money and they don't care about the higher fees.