Pension News

Bill Easing Pension Obligations Dies in Senate Lame-Duck Session

Workforce Management – November 20, 2008
It’s not clear whether the measure will be revived in another special session in December or will have to wait until a new Congress is seated in January.

Happy New Year? Not for some

MarketWatch.com – November 19, 2008
403(b) plans will have fewer investment options, more restrictions in 2009.

What You Need to Know: Retirement Benefits

Washington Post – November 19, 2008
One reason so many federal employees stay with the government is that its retirement benefits stack up well against what's available elsewhere -- so well that they're often called "golden handcuffs" because they induce people to stick around for the payoff at the end.

Traditional pensions: Are they at risk?

Christian Science Monitor – November 17, 2008
Many defined-benefit plans are underfunded. Here's how to keep track of your benefits.

Calls grow to overhaul 401(k) retirement plans

Los Angeles Times – November 16, 2008
The financial crisis, which has caused a dramatic decline in the value of the average worker's account, has undermined confidence in the system.

For Many Seniors, an Ominous Retirement-Account Deadline

Washington Post – November 16, 2008
Millions of retirees older than 70 1/2 are required to take money out of their 401(k)s and IRAs by Dec. 31 of each year. But the amount they have to take out is based on their balance at the end of 2007. And the market sure looked a lot better last year than it does this year

Retirees fear for pensions and health benefits

Saginaw (MI) News – November 16, 2008
With General Motors Corp.'s stock tanking and the automaker possibly running out of cash before the end of the year, 73-year-old Kenneth Rathje and other retirees posed questions about pensions and health benefits.

Which pension option is best?

Newsday – November 15, 2008
“My husband is about to retire after working 27 years. He was given a sheet from the human resources department advising us of our pension choices, but we're not sure what they are or which ones we should take.”

3 Things That Could Go Wrong With Your Pension

U.S. News and World Report (blog) – November 14, 2008
Workers lucky enough to have pensions generally have a better shot at a secure retirement than their pensionless peers with depleted 401(k)'s. But when companies face hard times, the future benefits workers expect to accrue in their pension plans are at risk.

New rule could change pension payouts for some new retirees

MarketWatch.com – November 13, 2008
A growing number of defined-benefit pension plans, especially small- to-mid-sized plans, could be in trouble this year because of the struggling stock market combined with a little-known provision in the Pension Protection Act of 2006.

Keep the promise

Bucks County (PA) Courier Times – November 13, 2008
Editorial: “We’re not saying companies should be allowed to tank and their workers chucked aside. It’s reasonable to allow exceptions. But companies seeking a break on pension funding requirements should have to shed weight at the top.”

Slump Leads More Firms To Halt 401(k) Matching

All Things Considered on NPR – November 12, 2008
It's definitely not a pension, but for tens of millions of people, a matching contribution into a 401(k) account is as good as it gets.

Retire the 401(K) System?

Workforce Management – November 12, 2008
As troubled as the 401(k) system may be, retirement plan experts argued recently for reforming it rather than getting rid of it.

Companies push Congress for pension relief

Associated Press via Google News – November 12, 2008
With pension funds facing billions of dollars in shortfalls as markets plunge, a range of companies from Ford to Verizon are pushing Congress to suspend portions of a two-year old law they say could force them to make job cuts as they shift scarce money into ailing retirement pools.

What Will Happen to My Pension if My Company Tanks?

U.S. News and World Report (blog) – November 11, 2008
Retirement advice columnist answers a reader's question about what happens when a pension plan is taken over by the PBGC.

The rise and fall of 401(k)

The Capital Times (Madison, WI) – November 11, 2008
Millions of Americans, many exposed for the first time to the risks of global markets, have seen the value of their 401(k), IRAs or other personal savings accounts nosedive in the wake of the current economic downturn and Wall Street implosion.

Time for a universal pension system

Pensions & Investments – November 10, 2008
By almost any measure, the current voluntary pension system should be viewed as a failure, and I believe that we should replace it with a mandatory universal pension system.

Mandatory IRA, 401(k) withdrawal bad for retirees now

USA Today – November 10, 2008
Since Dec. 31, 2007, the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 index, broad index of publicly traded stocks, has declined nearly 36%. That has blown a hole in most retirement portfolios, but younger retirees at least have the option of postponing withdrawals until the market recovers. Retirees who are older than 70½ don't have that choice.

How to save your retirement

Money – November 10, 2008
With the risk to your No. 1 goal growing, you may be wondering what to do now.

To ride out bad times with 401(k) savings takes a plan

USA Today – November 9, 2008
The nation is experiencing what some have called the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. And based on the sharp drop in the value of their 401(k)s, few American families would disagree.

Dashed dreams of retirement

Philadelphia Inquirer – November 9, 2008
A year ago, about 33 percent of men aged 65 to 69 in the labor force - meaning they wanted to work, rather than be retired - actually had jobs. This year, it's around 36 percent. Ten years ago, it was about 25 percent.

Time to rescue America's retirement plans

MarketWatch.com – November 6, 2008
Add to the list of things Barack Obama must do after he becomes president on Jan. 20: Fix the nation's retirement system and fast. And I'm not talking Social Security. That's the least of our worries.

Big profits, yes, but big oil also has big hole in pension funding

Financial Week – November 6, 2008
While few corporate pensions have been immune to the dramatic downturn in the equity markets this year, it appears that plans at energy companies are in the worst shape.

Retirement Revisited: 4'Uh-Oh'1(k)

The Ledger (Lakeland, FL) – November 5, 2008
There is one corner of the financial picture - America's vital retirement accounts - for which the crisis is neither new nor unprecedented, a U.S. House committee was told last month.

Recession may jeopardize 401(k) contributions

Associated Press via the Washington Post – November 4, 2008
Retirement accounts already battered by a steep market decline may get hit again as several companies suspend or reduce their 401(k) match to save cash.

New savings plan could help millions

Retire Smart via the Columbus (OH) Dispatch – November 4, 2008
No matter who wins the election today, one retirement-savings option has a good chance of becoming reality. Called the Automatic IRA, it could keep millions of Americans out of poverty in old age.

Retirement: Better to wait?

Seattle Post-Intelligencer – November 3, 2008
Editorial: "The list of companies eager to tap federal bailout money continues to grow. Banks, auto manufacturers and on and on. But how do you bail out the entire retirement system?"

Dropping 401(k) help sets scary tone

Daily Herald (Everett, WA) – November 3, 2008
Recent news that I found particularly distressing was word that General Motors Corp. is suspending its matching contributions to employee 401(k) retirement accounts.

Study poses need to protect 401(k)s from market risk

Investment News – November 2, 2008
In the 12-month period through early October, 401(k) plans and individual retirement accounts dropped in value by $2 trillion due to market volatility, and a new study questions whether retirement accounts are too exposed to market risk.

Should Feds Rescue Retirement System, Too?

U.S. News & World Report – October 31, 2008
Blog entry: "...there's been little but hand-wringing when it comes to the huge losses suffered by individual retirement accounts, what's left of traditional private defined benefit pensions, and state and local retirement programs."

Public employees’ pension fund no stranger to economic fluctuation

Capitol Weekly – October 30, 2008
Officials at CalPERS and specialists in the Capitol say the outlook for the fund is sound, and note that the massive fund’s investment strategy, called a ‘smoothing’ policy, is based on a long-term, 15-year engagement rather than short-term sell-offs and protects against a turbulent Wall Street.

Should a demand for change include 401(k) plans?

Associated Press via Yahoo! Finance – October 30, 2008
Congressional hearings highlight proposed overhaul of retirement funding.

"Flawed" 401(k) Laws Putting Retirement at Risk

ConsumerAffairs.com – October 29, 2008
Defined-contribution plans not meant to replace pensions

More companies may end 401(k) match

USA Today – October 28, 2008
As the economic slump deepens, more companies are expected to join General Motors in suspending matches of contributions to their employees' 401(k) retirement accounts.

Pension trouble

Baltimore Sun – October 28, 2008
Editorial: Washington must find ways to help companies keep their pension promises

Slide in stocks means baby boomers have lost a big chunk of their nest egg

Providence Journal – October 27, 2008
Baby boomers with one eye on retirement and the other on their investments, including their stock portfolios and house values, are facing a tough choice.  Work longer or cut back their plans for retirement. 

401(k) plans could be facing a total revamp

Pensions & Investments – October 27, 2008
House Democrat George Miller is calling for a soup-to-nuts re-examination of 401(k) plans in light of dramatic investment losses this year that could lead to a radical overhaul of the popular defined contribution plans.

The Latest Bad News For Your 401(k)?

Washington Post – October 26, 2008
American workers, forced to look on helplessly as the value of their 401(k)s sink in sync with the Dow, now have something else to worry about. On Wednesday, General Motors told its nonunion employees that starting next month, it would stop matching their contributions to their 401(k) plans until business conditions improve.

Concerns fly over airlines’ pensions

Atlanta Journal-Constitution – October 26, 2008
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. is doing an assessment of Delta Air Lines and Northwest Airlines to determine whether their merger will have an impact on their ability to fund their pension plans.

Why Pensions Are Probably Safe

BusinessWeek – October 23, 2008
The federal pension-guarantee fund has lost money, but it appears healthy enough to backstop any market losses by traditional corporate plans

With big funding gaps likely, employers seek easing of pension rules

Financial Week – October 23, 2008
An employer benefit lobbying group Wednesday urged federal legislators to take a series of steps, including easing pension plan funding rules, to avoid widespread benefit freezes and damage to the nation’s economy.

U.S. Insurer of Pensions Has Lost $2 Billion

New York Times – October 23, 2008
The federal agency that guarantees pensions has lost $2.1 billion on its investments so far this year, foreshadowing expected losses among corporate pension funds, state retirement systems and others that provide a financial backstop for an aging population.

Retirement Fund Director Seeks to Calm Workers' Nerves

Washington Post – October 21, 2008
Some federal employees invested for retirement in the Thrift Savings Plan's ultra-safe G Fund became unnerved recently. They worried that with the government on the hook for billions of dollars in financial rescue funds, it might raid the G Fund to help pay for it.

Retirees feeling heat amid crisis

Indianapolis Star – October 21, 2008
Rich Hopkins' hopes for a secure retirement are slipping away with the Wall Street financial meltdown.

401(k)s Take On Traits Of Old Pensions

Investor's Business Daily – October 20, 2008
Now 401(k) plans are morphing in the direction of traditional pension plans. Huge differences remain between the two types of retirement programs. But 401(k)s are taking on some of traditional pension plans' leave-the-driving-to-us features.

The consequences of drawing on pensions at an early age

Christian Science Monitor – October 20, 2008
A financial advice columnist answers a reader's question about taking a pension early.

No 401(k) do-over for you

Money – October 17, 2008
Right now we'd all like one, but when it comes to running our retirement into the ground, some of us have no one to blame but ourselves.

Ga. educators upset over proposed pension change

Associated Press via the Telegraph (Macon, GA) – October 17, 2008
A proposed change to the way Georgia doles out teacher pensions has retired educators angry that the state wants to change a 40-year-old policy on cost-of-living adjustments.

House Democrats Contemplate Abolishing 401(k) Tax Breaks

Workforce Management – October 16, 2008
Powerful House Democrats are eyeing proposals to overhaul the nation’s $3 trillion 401(k) system, including the elimination of most of the $80 billion in annual tax breaks that 401(k) investors receive.

Consider the source of your 401(k) advice

Associated Press via Forbes – October 16, 2008
As Wall Street struggles to regain its footing, many investors have learned a hard lesson about managing their own investments and are looking for advice. But who should they listen to? A government proposal to allow employees of companies that sell mutual funds and other investments to offer direct advice to investors remains a subject of controversy.

Will You Retire? New Economic Realities Keep More Americans In the Workforce Longer

Washington Post – October 15, 2008
At a time when they need more money because of longer life expectancies, many are facing a retirement with less because the wildly fluctuating stock market has depleted 401(k) plans and individual retirement accounts. Meanwhile, more and more employers are moving away from defined benefit plans, such as pensions, in which they guarantee workers a certain amount of money for retirement.

401(k) fallacy: Get-rich scheme was too good to be true

Indianapolis Star – October 14, 2008
The essential fallacy of the 401(k) has been exposed. It took a historic market collapse -- one that threatens to impoverish workers already in retirement and those who are nearing it.

Disappearing pensions make Americans' lives less secure

Free Press (Detroit, MI) – October 14, 2008
Of all the trends, perhaps the most worrisome is the failure of highly touted 401(k) private savings accounts to replace fast-disappearing traditional pensions.

With retirement hopes solidly in stocks, worries abound

Dallas Morning News – October 14, 2008
Fewer and fewer American companies offer pensions with defined benefits. They've transferred the risk of saving enough for retirement to their employees.

Market Mess Exposes Gaps in 401(k) Savers’ Knowledge

Workforce Management – October 13, 2008
HR managers in recent weeks are realizing that despite all the financial education they offer, many employees still don’t understand the fundamentals of 401(k) plans.

Retirement Wreck, Are 401(k)s Still Viable for Saving?

Washington Post – October 12, 2008
For many Americans, 401(k) plans were supposed to be their own little golden parachutes into retirement. Now, it seems, those parachutes may not open in time.

Across the Country, Fear About Savings, the Job Market and Retirement

New York Times – October 12, 2008
Across the country, Americans are tallying their many losses from the relentless rout in the markets. Financial message boards on the Internet are filled with confessions of fear — about hits to savings, job security and scuttled retirement plans.

Retirement hopes deflate in tumble

San Diego Union-Tribune – October 10, 2008
Investors' losses cascade into trillions while pension plans, considered relatively safe, follow in downward spiral.

Almost always, opt for monthly pension payments

Dallas Morning News – October 9, 2008
Personal finance columnist answers a reader's question about taking a lump sum vs. an annuity.

Retirement accounts have lost $2 trillion - so far

Associated Press via the Washington Post – October 8, 2008
Americans' retirement plans have lost as much as $2 trillion in the past 15 months -- about 20 percent of their value -- Congress' top budget analyst estimated Tuesday as lawmakers began investigating how turmoil in the financial industry is whittling away workers' nest eggs

Relax - your pension is safe

Money – October 7, 2008
The good news: The money you've already made isn't going anywhere. The bad news: your plan's days are probably numbered.

High Court to Hear Arguments on ERISA Beneficiary Designation

Texas Lawyer – October 6, 2008
The U.S. Supreme Court will hear arguments Oct. 7 regarding whether a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO) under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act trumps a woman's voluntary waiver of her ex-husband's pension benefits, an issue that has divided federal appeals courts and left divorce lawyers unsure how to advise clients.

Market decline jeopardizes pensions

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – October 5, 2008
As workers monitor their debilitated retirement savings accounts, the dwindling number of employers offering pension benefits are doing the same. They aren't finding the picture any prettier.

401K dreams fall apart: Crisis has many reducing savings, postponing retirement

Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ) – October 4, 2008
Investors are spooked by a rabbit punch series of bad news -- failing banks, companies being bailed out by the government and a stock market that could use some Prozac and a few counseling sessions. The effect of those events shows up in the bottom line of their retirement accounts -- 401(k)s, 403(b)s, IRAs and others.

What Will Happen to My WaMu Pension Plan?

BusinessWeek – October 3, 2008
Retirement columnist answers a reader's question.

Retirement savings: Regroup or ride it out?

USA Today – October 2, 2008
Jitters about retirement savings have mushroomed as the Wall Street crisis has grown ever more ominous. During the first week of the meltdown last month, $411 million in 401(k) money was moved into fixed-income funds, including stable value, bonds and money market funds, according to Hewitt Associates.

Not So Fast, Would-Be Retirees

Morning Edition on National Public Radio – October 2, 2008
The financial crisis on Wall Street is leading to lots of anxiety among investors, especially retirees. Many financial experts are calling on investors to be patient and wait for the stock markets to rebound, but retirees don't have the luxury of taking that advice. Now those experts are cautioning would-be retirees in their 60s to keep on working.

Why 401(k) plans don't work

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – September 30, 2008
Op-ed: The inadequacies I'm talking about may seem nitpicky at first blush, but the misconceptions and invalid expectations that 401(k)s nurture in inexperienced investors are mind-blowing.

WaMu employees try to tally stock losses, pension uncertain

Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle) – September 30, 2008
Thousands of Washington Mutual employees across the country whose stock options are worthless now face the possibility that their pension benefits may be at risk.

Will the 401(k) Allow for Retirement?

Human Resource Executive Online – September 29, 2008
The trend away from defined-benefit plans toward defined-contribution plans makes it harder for workers to have adequate retirement income. And even with default enrollment and other provisions in the pension-reform act, it's likely that many workers will not be able to stop working.

Economic downturn especially rough on retirees

Pittsburgh Tribune-Review – September 27, 2008
At a time when many companies have switched from traditional fixed pensions to defined contribution plans, such as 401(k) accounts, many retirees are more vulnerable than ever, experts say.

Save Pensions

New York Times – September 26, 2008
Editorial: The meltdown in the financial industry isn’t merely a housing story populated by panicked home owners. Near retirees’ and retirees’ lives have been turned upside down, too, as their risky 401(k) savings accounts erode.

Retirees, and those who’d like to be, worry about investments, expenses

Las Vegas Sun – September 26, 2008
Some of those to be hardest hit by the flood of bad economic news cascading down from Wall Street are retired Las Vegas Valley residents who, even a month ago, might have believed their days of work were behind them.

Savers Seek Yields as Market Trims Retirement Plans

Bloomberg News – September 25, 2008
Savers who have seen their retirement accounts slashed by a 19 percent drop in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index this year may be looking for higher yields to prepare for retirement. That is if they have any money left to invest.

Retirees Filling the Front Line in Market Fears

New York Times – September 23, 2008
As companies have switched from fixed pensions to 401(k) accounts, retirees risk losing big chunks of their wealth and income in a single day’s trading, as many have in the last month.

To retire comfortably, it all boils down to time

USA Today – September 22, 2008
Everyone knows that wannabe retirees are in a bind today as they consider whether they have the financial security to make the leap. Shrinking nest eggs, nagging inflation, stagnant wages, vanishing pensions, dubious advice and runaway health care costs are among the obstacles that can block a retiree's escape route.

Payout just one part of pension decision

Chicago Tribune – September 21, 2008
Choosing a pension option for retirement? Don't automatically jump at the highest monthly payout, experts say.

Rule would alter public employee pensions

Las Vegas Review-Journal – September 20, 2008
IRS plan, which could eliminate early retirement options, is set to be implemented in 2010.

Pension Benefit Guaranty Board to cover Rand McNally plan

Chicago Tribune – September 18, 2008
The federal agency that protects worker pension plans said Thursday that it has assumed responsibility for the plan that covers about 760 former employees of Skokie-based map publisher Rand McNally & Co.

Stock-market woes highlight risk U.S. families now face

McClatchy News Service – September 18, 2008
As millions of people watched their 401(k) retirement plans rise and fall this week along with the stock markets, their fears reflect a sweeping revolution in how Americans save for retirement.

Is your 401(k) plan protected?

Associated Press via Yahoo! Finance – September 17, 2008
With the turmoil in the financial services sector, you might be concerned about the safety of all that money you've allowed to be deducted from your paycheck and invested in a 401(k) or other retirement account.

Wall Street turmoil may extend to pensions

The Blade (Toledo, OH) – September 16, 2008
Many 401(k) plans rooted in troubled banks.

Pension of Disbelief

Washington Post – September 15, 2008
Taxpayers need better information about government's retirement promises to civil servants.

Keeping a job you love can help your 401(k)

Kiplinger's News Service via Newsday – September 14, 2008
When Verizon announced that it was freezing its pension plan two years ago, many longtime employees feared that the value of their pensions might decline if they hung around.

Some former Portsmouth employees irked by pension cut

Virginian-Pilot (Hampton Roads, VA) – September 14, 2008
Former city employees and a group of other retirees want the City Council to eliminate the reductions for Social Security and reinstate the cost-of-living adjustments.

Changing jobs? Don't crack open that 401(k) vault

USA Today – September 12, 2008
Younger generations change jobs more often than Baby Boomers do, and when they do, they're more likely than the population as a whole to cash out their 401(k) accounts, according to Hewitt Associates.

How Much Does Your 401(k) Cost You?

Wall Street Journal via Yahoo! Finance – September 10, 2008
You may not realize it, but you could be paying thousands of dollars a year in fees on your 401(k) retirement account, hidden expenses that affect how your savings will grow. The government is now trying to expose those charges so you can make better investment decisions.

Are Your Retirement Accounts Safe?

BusinessWeek – September 10, 2008
With more banks expected to fail, it's a good time to look into the protections available for your retirement accounts.

Early retirement? Why it pays to stay

Money – September 9, 2008
Companies are dangling buyouts before older workers, but the packages are rarely enough to support their lifestyles.

401(k) ‘dippers’ robbing future to pay now

Atlanta Journal-Constitution – September 7, 2008
The tough economy and tight credit have pushed more people to rob their future to pay today’s debts.

Confusion over IBM pension hike

Times Herald-Record (Middletown, NY) – September 7, 2008
Not all former Big Blue staff will be eligible.

Saving for retirement is for women, too

Kansas City Star – September 6, 2008
More women than men outlive their savings, partly because they tend to live longer. But women’s work histories also set the stage for financially pinched retirement years.

Women often lack glitter in their golden years

Kansas City Star – September 6, 2008
The odds for a comfortable retirement are not in women’s favor.

Revisions Considered for Valuations Of Public Pension Fund Payouts

Washington Post – September 5, 2008
The leading U.S. association of actuaries is considering a change to the way state and local officials value the cost of their pension promises, which could force governments to dramatically raise their contributions to their retirement plans.

Retirement account rules catch many by surprise

Associated Press via the Washington Post – September 2, 2008
There's some sentiment that a government rule that forces retirees to withdraw money from their IRA and 401(k) accounts when they turn 70 1/2 may need to be changed. That's because people are living longer and need to keep as much of their retirement money for as long as possible, said several financial advisers and a leader of the Senate Finance Committee.

Using Nest Eggs Before Maturity

Washington Post – September 2, 2008
Despite Penalties, More Workers Are Borrowing From 401(k) Plans.

Defined Contribution Plans: Version 2.0

Treasury and Risk – September 1, 2008
Pioneers overhaul their 40(k) plans to net employees more money for retirement and perhaps guaranteed lifetime income like pensions.

Insights on Roth 401(k)s and excessive plan fees

Employee Benefit News – September 1, 2008
While Roths are beginning to gain traction, the presidential election may affect their growing popularity, as the new president - whomever he may be - likely will increase tax rates on individuals earning more than $250,000.

It's not a good idea to let company stock dominate 401(k)

USA Today – September 1, 2008
Enron's spectacular collapse in the fall of 2001 hammered home the risks of owning too much company stock. Some Enron employees who were heavily invested in company stock saw their retirement savings evaporate overnight.

Off the rails

Employee Benefit News – September 1, 2008
Fewer than one in five employees are on track to meet estimated income needs in retirement.

Laboring longer a growing trend for Americans

Associated Press via the Washington Post – September 1, 2008
Americans are changing the game plan for retirement, with millions laboring right past the traditional retirement age and working into their late 60s and beyond.

Stock-ownership plans give employees equity

Arizona Republic (Phoenix, AZ) – August 29, 2008
Although they don't get as much publicity as 401(k) plans or individual retirement accounts, ESOPs have an estimated 10 million participants working at 11,500 companies, the vast majority of which are small and privately held.

Study: Bankruptcies soar for senior citizens

Associated Press via the Washington Post – August 27, 2008
While the bankruptcy filing rate for those under 55 has fallen, it has soared for older Americans, according to a new analysis from the Consumer Bankruptcy Project, which examined a sampling of noncommercial bankruptcies filed between 1991 and 2007.

Executive agrees to 14 years in prison

The Tennessean (Nashville, TN) – August 27, 2008
1Point CEO is accused of embezzling millions from retirement accounts. 

Deal shifts GM pensions to Delphi; retirees fear its default

Free Press (Detroit, MI) – August 27, 2008
Delphi expects to move some of its hourly pension obligations -- not salaried retirees' pensions -- to the over-funded pension plan at GM, which is fighting for its own financial health in North America, having lost almost $70 billion in the last 3 1/2 years.

Middle-class security

Akron Beacon-Journal – August 27, 2008
Editorial: "A more secure retirement requires a balanced approach to shoring up Social Security and effective savings plans"

Some early retirees have second thoughts

USA Today – August 27, 2008
Some older Boomers have postponed plans to retire until the storm blows over. An AARP survey conducted in April found that nearly 20% of workers 55 to 64 plan to delay retirement because of the economy.

3 of 4 West Virginia teachers switch to DB

Pensions & Investments – August 26, 2008
More than three out of four active participants in a West Virginia defined contribution plan for state educational system employees transferred their retirement savings to a state defined benefit plan, Anne Werum Lambright, executive director of the West Virginia Consolidated Public Retirement Board, Charleston, said in an interview today

Latest Ruling on Cash-Balance Plans Seen as Ending ‘Fear of Litigation’

Workforce Management – August 25, 2008
A unanimous decision last week by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco joined four other appeals courts in ruling that the plans do not discriminate against older employees. 

Overcoming clients' puny nest eggs

Investment News – August 25, 2008
Most baby boomers will continue to work because they haven't saved enough.

Employers switch retirement providers due to fees

Investment News – August 25, 2008
They are No. 1 reason for switch, up from third in ’05 study.

When pensions and teachers collide

Los Angeles Times – August 22, 2008
Editorial: "Professionals should not have to put their Social Security benefits at risk when they become teachers."

English, Altmire tout proposal for automatic retirement accounts

The Herald (Sharon, PA) – August 21, 2008
Republican U.S. Rep. Phil English and Democratic Rep. Jason Altmire touted legislation that would automatically enroll any employee of a small business with more than 10 workers into an individual retirement account.

Depleting the Nest Egg

Human Resource Executive Online – August 20, 2008
Although it's not new, a plan that lets workers tap into loaned 401(k) funds with a debit card is drawing heaps of critics -- and possibly legislation.

Workers swearing off 401(k) loans, says survey

Financial Week – August 19, 2008
Employer education about downside of borrowing from retirement accounts may be working.

Pension Games

Hartford (CT) Business Journal – August 18, 2008
Editorial: "Your pension assets are more vulnerable now than ever before because no one in government seems inclined to defend your interests against the sort of financial predators who brought us the subprime mess."

PBGC downplays investment plan risks, report says

Associated Press via the Washington Post – August 18, 2008
The federal agency charged with backstopping pension benefits for 44 million Americans has understated the risks of its new investment policy, a congressional watchdog said Monday.

Republic Technologies retirees see red over pension reductions

The Repository (Canton, OH) – August 17, 2008
When it comes to pensions, the word "guarantee" is wearing a little thin on Republic Technologies International retirees.

Less Than Golden Years

New York Times – August 15, 2008
Editorial: "Congress, for its part, needs to guard against undue leakage from retirement accounts."

403(b) retirement plan will get a 401(k)-like makeover

Houston Chronicle – August 13, 2008
On July 23, 2007, the Internal Revenue Service finalized new regulations for 403(b) retirement plans — savings plans for tax-exempt workplaces — to make them look more like their cousins, 401(k) retirement plans sponsored by private-sector companies.

Pensions: monthly payments v. lump sum

Money – August 13, 2008
Financial advice column on the question of taking a lump-sum or an annuity.

Boeing Presses Unions to Drop Traditional Pensions

BusinessWeek – August 12, 2008
In contract talks, Boeing embraces defined-contribution plans that grow less, but free up company money.

Labor Dept. takes a good first step on our 401(k)s

St. Louis Post-Dispatch – August 12, 2008
Don't panic if, sometime next year, you see a new fee on your quarterly 401(k) statement.

Some older workers are rethinking retirement

Dallas Morning News – August 12, 2008
After watching their nest eggs crack under the weight of falling stock and home prices, some workers who were about to quit the daily grind have put those plans on hold. And some retirees have even returned to work.

How to Disqualify a Pension Plan

CFO.com – August 11, 2008
Handing over your underfunded pension plan to a financial institution may cripple the plan's tax benefit.

Employers boost 401(k)s to meet workers' demand

Associated Press via Washington Post – August 11, 2008
Corporate America may have turned its back on traditional pensions but it appears to be embracing 401(k)s more than ever.

Can Women Bridge the Retirement Savings Gap?

BusinessWeek – August 11, 2008
Studies keep showing that men save more than women, but there are ways to narrow the difference. Here's how.

Employer errors imperil 401(k) savings

Chicago Tribune – August 10, 2008
Employer mistakes could cost 401(k) participants.

A retirement plan where everything goes wrong

Tribune Media Services via the Chicago Tribune – August 10, 2008
Persistent misconceptions can put many retirees at risk of running out of money, according to a follow-up "Retirement Income IQ" study conducted this year by the MetLife Mature Market Institute.

Retirement pop quiz! How well do you know your finances?

USA Today – August 7, 2008
If you're saving for retirement, you probably have many questions.

Treasury rules against pension plan transfers

Forbes.com – August 6, 2008
This decision dealt a blow to the already reeling financial services sector Wednesday, ruling that companies can't transfer their pension plans to large banks to be managed for a profit.

Companies Tap Pension Plans To Fund Executive Benefits

Wall Street Journal – August 4, 2008
At a time when scores of companies are freezing pensions for their workers, some are quietly converting their pension plans into resources to finance their executives' retirement benefits and pay.

US Lawmakers discuss retirement poverty

Financial Times.com – August 3, 2008
After 30 years in a 401(k) plan, the average worker retiring in her 60s would have about $193,700 in 2006, according to the most recent Employee Benefit Research Institute data - about $6,450 a year if she lives until she is 90. Comparatively, every $100 invested in a DB plan earns about $200 more over the same 30 years than the same amount invested in a DC plan, according to CEM Bench­marking.

Don't become a cautionary tale: Sponsors must beware paying plan expenses from the plan

Employee Benefit News – August 1, 2008
Since the Department of Labor in 2003 issued guidance allowing expenses to be allocated differently among active and terminated participants, much more focus has been placed on expenses being paid from a retirement plan.

Retiring in stages: Boomers get more options

New York Times – July 30, 2008
A study released Wednesday by Hewitt Associates found 61 percent of U.S. companies have or will develop programs that let workers retire in stages

House discusses Delta-Northwest merger impact

Forbes.com – July 30, 2008
During a hearing in Washington before a U.S. House of Representatives subcommittee, the officials said they have not received assurances that certain Northwest pension benefits would be protected if Delta's buyout of Northwest is completed

Labor Department cautions on use of 401(k) debit cards

Financial Times – July 29, 2008
Employees who want to borrow from their 401(k) accounts should be aware that they will likely pay interest and fees, and must pay taxes if they are late in repaying the loan, the Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Labor said in a joint advisory to investors

Employer Contributions to IRAs

BusinessWeek Online – July 28, 2008
Your employees should be grateful you provide a pension, but they like to see consistency and security in your payments.

SEC, Labor Dept. teaming up on retirement plans

Associated Press via Yahoo! News – July 28, 2008
The Labor Department and Securities and Exchange Commission plan to work more closely together in their roles overseeing private-sector employees' retirement plans.

Parking 401(k) at old job could be best way to go

Chicago Tribune – July 27, 2008
Leaving an employer and planning to take retirement savings with you? In some cases, your money doesn't need to move on as badly as you do.

Don't let loyalty fry your nest egg

St. Petersburg (FL) Times – July 27, 2008
Employer stock holdings have declined to a little more than 10 percent of 401(k) assets, showing some people have learned the Enron lesson. However, others still have too many eggs in one basket.

Helping women think about retirement

Baltimore Sun – July 27, 2008
Women worry more about retirement than men.

Fear factor

MarketWatch.com – July 27, 2008
Women far more worried than men about retirement -- with good reason

Rate of return crucial in retirement plans

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – July 27, 2008

Details of the Proposed Regulation

Human Resource Executive Online – July 25, 2008
Summary of the Labor Department's proposed regulations on 401(k) fees.

Despite rise of auto-enrollment, 401(k) participation rates stall

Financial Week – July 23, 2008
Enrollment rate for the defined-contribution plans stuck at around 76%, Deloitte finds; big bump-up coming?

Proposed rule would require employers to provide fee comparison for 401(k)s

Los Angeles Times – July 23, 2008
The Labor Department says the new regulation would reduce confusion for account holders.

Labor Dept. seeks better disclosure of 401(k) fees

Associated Press via Yahoo! News – July 22, 2008
Millions of participants in 401(k)-style retirement plans would receive more information about the costs of those programs, a move that could help boost savings, under a rule proposed by the Labor Department Tuesday.

Getting the most out of your pension

Daily Advertiser (Lafayette, LA) – July 21, 2008
If you or your spouse is eligible to receive a pension, it will figure prominently in your retirement planning. However, pension laws are complicated, so it is important to learn the facts about your company's pension plan to make sure that you obtain the benefits to which you are entitled.

Privatization plan puts pension in jeopardy

Royal Oak (MI) Daily Tribune – July 21, 2008
300 part-time employees to become employees of temporary staffing agency.

Stacked deck

MarketWatch.com – July 20, 2008
Debit card that taps 401(k) retirement savings is easy to use -- and abuse.

Another piece of the puzzle

Newsday – July 19, 2008
More companies help employees sort out their 401(k) options

Update: New Proposed Legislation on 401(k) Debit Cards

New York Times – July 19, 2008
Reserve Solutions allows customers to access their loan via a debit card at an A.T.M. or any merchant that accepts Visa.

Wal-Mart slams suit claiming its 401(k) fees are over the top

Financial Week – July 18, 2008
Retailer says price not the only consideration in choosing funds; original complaint filed against company in March.

Pentagon will recheck veterans' requests for back benefits

Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH) – July 17, 2008
The Pentagon's accounting unit agreed Wednesday to double-check requests by more than 25,000 veterans who were turned down for back benefits, concurring with U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich that "a veteran deserves better."

White-collar Chrysler retiree group looks to protect benefits

Detroit News – July 17, 2008
A standing-room-only crowd of 150 Chrysler LLC white-collar retirees packed a meeting Wednesday to discuss how they can protect their remaining benefits in the wake of life insurance cuts last month by the automaker and a day after rival General Motors Corp. slashed health insurance for its former workers.

Lawmakers seek to ban 401(k) debit cards

Reuters – July 16, 2008
Debit cards linked to retirement savings accounts would be banned under a bill set to be introduced in the U.S. Senate.

Workers break retirement piggy bank in tight times

Associated Press via the Washington Post – July 16, 2008
Americans are raiding their already fragile retirement piggy banks to weather financial hardships such as unemployment, medical emergencies and buying a home.

Congress hears why DB plans are essential

Employee Benefit News – July 15, 2008
Defined benefit retirement plans are not just important to the welfare of retirees, but also represent a critical sector of the economy, panelists at a recent hearing before the U.S. Joint Economic Committee told lawmakers.

401(k) Matches May Be Targeted in Market Downturn

Workforce Management – July 15, 2008
In the last market downturn, in 2001-02, companies hit hardest—such as Ford Motor Co. and Bethlehem Steel—suspended their 401(k) matches to save money.

Women less aggressive than men in retirement saving

Investment News – July 14, 2008
They are less likely to qualify for maximum matching.

DOL unveils fee reporting guidance

Pensions & Investments – July 14, 2008
The Department of Labor today announced long-awaited guidance for reporting fees and compensation arrangements of plan service providers on the agency’s new annual 5500 reporting forms.

Stock holdings in retirement plans may require special treatment

St. Louis Post-Dispatch – July 13, 2008
Employees who hold stock or options in a company that is being bought face some interesting choices. One concerns company stock that's held in a defined contribution retirement plan, such as a 401(k).

Many Retirees Face Prospect of Outliving Savings, Study Says

Washington Post – July 13, 2008
Nearly three out of five middle-class retirees will probably run out of money if they maintain their pre-retirement lifestyles, a new study from Ernst & Young has concluded.

House Approves Smoothing Technique in Pension Bill

Workforce Management – July 9, 2008
Employers will be able to take into account expected future growth of their pension plan investments when calculating current contributions under a bill unanimously approved by the House of Representatives on Wednesday, July 9.

Rollover for retirement

Marketwatch.com – July 8, 2008
If you're switching jobs, don't be tempted to cash out your 401(k).

Do You Have a Retirement Parachute?

Barron's – July 7, 2008
Australia provides a model for a better retirement system.

In tough times, make your 401(k) a priority

Baltimore Sun – July 6, 2008
Rising gas and food prices and a stock market slump are starting to prompt people to reduce or suspend contributions to their 401(k) retirement plans.

Investors' anxiety builds as retirement nest eggs show cracks

Boston Globe – July 6, 2008
Most will find their stock and bond funds in 401(k) and individual retirement accounts sank between April and June as soaring fuel prices and woes in the financial sector dragged down markets.

Workers aren't saving enough

Associated Press via the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review – July 6, 2008
Four out of five workers aren't saving enough to maintain their lifestyles after retirement, with women being at a disadvantage because of their longer life spans and lower pay, according to a study released last week.

Bayh: What happened to RTI pensions?

Post-Tribune (Gary, IN) – July 3, 2008
Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh and 12 other U.S. senators want federal officials to investigate how the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. determined benefits for more than 3,000 retired steelworkers -- many from Indiana -- who recently had their pensions significantly reduced.

Goal for retirement saving rises

USA Today – July 1, 2008
With medical care and other costs soaring, the portion of their pre-retirement pay that Americans will need in retirement to keep the same standard of living is rising, financial planners say.

The best way to take a pension

Money – July 1, 2008
A life of monthly checks usually beats a big lump sum.

Make it stretch: Shaking off the lump-sum mentality in favor of annuities

Employee Benefit News – July 1, 2008
Behavior economics shows that when workers reach retirement, they prefer a lump-sum distribution. For many, purchasing an annuity is simply not that appealing. However, annuities do allow retirees to exchange accumulated wealth for a lifetime stream of guaranteed income.

401(k) fees on the front burner for DOL, Congress

Employee Benefit News – July 1, 2008
Legislators and federal agencies plan to concentrate their efforts on addressing excessive 401(k) fees, and employers can expect to see new guidance on several retirement-related topics soon.

Bankruptcy filings on rise among older Americans

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette – July 1, 2008
These are tough economic times for people of all ages, but few are affected more than senior citizens living on pensions and Social Security, and juggling medical bills, credit card payments and mortgages along with soaring food and gas costs.