Unfunded Private Pension Plans

For almost five decades, Fundamentals of Private Pensions has been the most authoritative text and reference book on private pensions in the world. The revised and updated Eighth Edition adds to past knowledge while providing exciting new perspectives on the provision of retirement income. This new edition is organized into six main sections dealing with a variety of separable pension issues. Section I provides an introductory discussion on the historical evolution of the pension movement and how pensions fit into the patchwork of the whole retirement income security system in the United States. It includes a discussion about the economics of the tax incentives that have played a role in stimulating pension offerings and in the structure of the benefits provided. Section 2 lays out the regulatory environment in which private pension plans operate. Section 3 investigates the various forms of retirement plans that are available to workers to determine how they are structured in practical terms. Section 4 focuses on the economics of pensions. Several of the chapters in this section update and refine material from the prior. New chapters in this volume describe the conversion of some traditional pensions to new hybrid forms, including cash balance and pension equity plans, and the growing phenomenon of phased retirement and the issues raised for employer-sponsored pensions. Section 5 explores the funding and accounting environments in which private employer-sponsored retirement plans operate. The concluding section investigates the handling of assets in employer-sponsored plans and their valuation as well as the insurance provision behind the benefit promises implied by the plans. This latest edition of Fundamentals of Private Pensions will prove invaluable reading for both academics and professionals working in the area of pensions and pension management.

When sponsors terminate underfunded plans during bankruptcy, it can deplete resources of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC), which protects the pensions of almost 44 million Amer. workers and retirees who participate in over 29,000 defined benefit pension plans. In 2009, PBGC reported a deficit of $30 billion. This report determined what pay and other compensation exec. received in the years preceding their company¿s termination of an underfunded defined benefit pension plan. The report analyzed a listing of the 1,246 underfunded plans that were terminated from 1999 to 2008 and selected public co. with large unfunded liabilities, large unfunded liabilities per participant, and a large number of plan participants. A print on demand report.

This book provides valuable information and analysis to managers, policymakers, and investment counselors in the rapidly expanding field of pension funding. American workers, too, need answers and insights on how to invest their money and plan for their retirement. fifteen of America's leading financial analysts address such pressing questions as -What is the current financial status of the elderly, and how vulnerable are they to inflation? -What is the impact of inflation on the private pension system, and what are the effects of alternative indexing schemes? -What roles can the social security system play in the provision of retirement income? -What is the effect of the tax code and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) on corporate pension policy? -How well funded are corporate pension plans, and is a firm's unfunded pension liability fully reflected in the market value of its common stock? Many of the conclusions these experts reach contradict and challenge popular views, thus providing fertile ground for innovation in pension planning.

Recent terminations of large underfunded pension plans, along with continued widespread underfunding, suggest weaknesses in pension funding rules that may threaten retirement incomes of these plans' participants, as well as the future viability of the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) single-employer insurance program. This report examines: (1) the recent funding & contribution experience of the nation's largest private defined benefit plans; (2) the funding & contribution experience of large underfunded plans, & the role of the additional funding charge; & (3) the implications of large plans' recent funding experiences for PBGC, in terms of risk to the agency's ability to insure benefits. Charts & tables.

Covers the period from 1970 to 1989. Provides a detailed examination of three pension policy issues: the portability of pensions for job changers, the protection from inflation of pension benefits, and funding pension plans.

A comprehensive look at the crisis of unfunded pension liabilities and what must be done to avoid the same problem in the future As the generational bubble of the Baby Boomers begins to retire, it is increasingly evident that governments, corporations, and individuals have failed to adequately prepare for the obligations and needs of this giant cohort. Retirees are outliving actuarial life expectancies, pension liabilities are skyrocketing, pension plans are underfunded, and medical costs rise, the United States alone can expect unfunded liabilities to exceed $4 trillion. Even while the American economy shows signs of sustained recovery, states and local governments will still experience sharp increases in pension fund payments through the next year or longer. Global Pension Crisis looks at this situation and offers practical advice for retirement plan managers and financial advisors, while also explaining how to strengthen pensions and prevent similar crises in the future. Offers a clear and comprehensive explanation of the current pension crisis for retirement fund managers, financial advisors, and economists Includes prescriptive guidance on how to strengthen the pension fund system and prevent another similar crisis Written by venture capitalist, entrepreneur, and former senior Wall Street executive Rich Marin