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Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

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  • Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

    If you do, count yourself among a dying breed. More and more companies that used to offer pensions to employees as a "reward" for loyalty are doing away with traditional pensions in favor of 401(k) or 403(b) plans.

    "...Aloha Airlines' decision to terminate its pension, which was approved by its largest union this week, puts the carrier in the company of a growing number of employers who are getting out of the business of managing retirement money for workers.

    In Aloha's case, the bankrupt company plans to turn its pension responsibilities over to a federal agency that promises to pay most of Aloha's obligations. Many other Hawai'i and Mainland companies are switching from pensions to retirement plans that give employees the right and responsibility to manage their own accounts.

    "It's a very common employer trend," said James Starshak, an attorney specializing in retirement plans with Honolulu law firm Carlsmith Ball LLC. Stock market downturns at the end of the tech bubble in 2000 caused many companies to re-examine their pension programs as returns on pension trusts plummeted...."

    The employees who will suffer the most are those who are nonunion workers because they have no collective bargaining agreements to negotiate. So even if you are contributing towards a pension today, there is no guarantee when you're old enough to collect on it that there will be anything near what you're expecting to collect in your fund.

    Miulang
    "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

  • #2
    Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

    I think my company has more of a "tension" plan.

    And they are really good at it, too!

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    • #3
      Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

      It seems to me pensions are a thing of the past. Even retirement plans through the State are changing , It used to be we contributed to the plan and when we retire the State matches you dollar for dollar . A few of us (like me) were smart and stayed with the old plan when the State was paying them out, but now they have some kind of hybird-plan that pays not as much.
      Listen to KEITH AND THE GIRLsigpic

      Stupid people come in all flavors-buzz1941
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      • #4
        Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

        And employers wonder why people will jump ship at the first offer that's better than what they have now...how can employees afford to be loyal to any company if the company isn't loyal to its employees?

        A pension was a reward for sticking with a company through thick and thin for 15, 20 or 25 years. If you didn't retire with a gold watch, at least you had a pension to count on. With no pension guaranteed, it's no wonder employees are looking out for themselves first.

        Miulang
        "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

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        • #5
          Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

          I guess I was one of the lucky ones where I had both a company pension plan and a company sponsored 401K plus an employee share plan which allowed us to purchase company stock at the lowest price over a 6-month period. That along with a 20% discount on that stock purchase. We could invest as much as we wanted so I invested 10% of my monthly gross income to that stock plan plus 16% to my 401K. That along with my pension plan plus whatever Social Security will pay out when I retire in 20-years and my personal IRA and investments should give me more spending money than I'm earning now.

          Plus with no car or mortage payments and my wife working and building her own Social Security, pension plan and 401k...we should be okay when we hit our golden years.

          This is why I cannot stress enough to those of you who are in your 20's or early 30's to start investing NOW. Contribute to your company's 401K plan NOW. Buy into your company's profit sharing or employee share plan NOW. Start saving money NOW. Talk to an investment broker and establish a modest growth stock/fund/bond portfolio NOW.

          Because Social Security isn't going to be enough. I just got my SSAN profile from the IRS and because I worked like a friggin dog for the past 24-years, I'm supposed to earn roughly $2,200 per month in Social Security Benefits but they go on to say that at current projections they can only guarantee 79% of that monthly payout.

          When you're young you can afford to sock away for retirement. When you get older, putting money away is much harder because you have things like mortgage, rent, car payments, insurance, KIDS and GRANDKIDS.

          The only thing I have left that I purchased when I was in my 20's...well come to think of it there's nothing materially. But my investments back then have been growing ever since. It's never too late to start but it's harder as each year matures and you add on more debt to your name.

          And the later you start, the less you'll have when you'll need it and can't earn it anymore because your tired old fart legs just can't stand at the register any longer ordering up a McDonald's Extra Value meal to some 16-year old who has discretionary money while you eat your oatmeal.

          We all grow old and just because you're young, that doesn't mean you're excluded from the senior citizen's discount program...yet. Save now and play later. This way you'll enjoy retirement.
          Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

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          • #6
            Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

            Originally posted by craigwatanabe

            Because Social Security isn't going to be enough. I just got my SSAN profile from the IRS and because I worked like a friggin dog for the past 24-years, I'm supposed to earn roughly $2,200 per month in Social Security Benefits but they go on to say that at current projections they can only guarantee 79% of that monthly payout.
            You're danged straight it won't be enough...by the time you can "retire" at 68 to collect your Social Security, if it still exists, Craig, a 10 lb bag of rice will cost $50 and everything else will cost much more too.

            Miulang
            "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

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            • #7
              Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

              Originally posted by Miulang
              You're danged straight it won't be enough...by the time you can "retire" at 68 to collect your Social Security, if it still exists, Craig, a 10 lb bag of rice will cost $50 and everything else will cost much more too.

              Miulang

              Ho Boy at that price you better drain your rice water with a strainer to catch every little grain of uncooked rice.
              Life is what you make of it...so please read the instructions carefully.

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              • #8
                Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

                Here's something else that I hope doesn't become a trend...companies laying people off even when they're making money!

                The last company I worked for just laid off another 60 people the other week. The CEO was so proud of that fact that he apparently crowed to the "survivors" of the layoffs that he was proud of the fact that the company was still making money and was able to lay people off. How does that make the people who weren't laid off feel (the people who got laid off were the older, more expensive and experienced employees)? That they should be fearful every single day they show up for work and no matter how hard they work that they, too, could be laid off without warning even if the company is not in financial difficulty?

                There are only 3 states in this country that aren't right-to-work states. So the people who are in most jeopardy of losing their jobs aren't the ones in unions, where they have collective bargaining protection; the most endangered species are the nonunion salaried employees who have to suck in their gut and accept any management whim to cut their pay or their bennies or try to find a comparable job elsewhere. And from what I saw in that last round of layoffs at my former company, if you're around 50 years old and/or have been at the same company for more than about 15 years, you'd better polish that resume, just in case.

                Since most employers no longer feel any loyalty to their employees who are earning them their nice bonuses, there should be absolutely no reason why a worker should be loyal to the company, either.

                Miulang
                Last edited by Miulang; November 12, 2005, 07:12 AM.
                "Americans believe in three freedoms. Freedom of speech; freedom of religion; and the freedom to deny the other two to folks they don`t like.” --Mark Twain

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                • #9
                  Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

                  I'm one of the few that works for a company that provides a non contributory pension plan and an optional 401K plan. So when I retire I collect 66% of my salary plus what ever I contributed to my 401K and Social Security.
                  Last edited by na alii; November 17, 2005, 10:41 PM.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

                    i work for a company that provides bennies for part-time employee (me) and offers profit sharing for full-timers...i don't know if the fullies get retirement through the company...

                    i'm not particularly concerned about retirement, because i'm sure that i'll be working 'till the day i die...
                    Don't be mean,
                    try to help.

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                    • #11
                      Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

                      I did work for a company with a pension plan and so have for some time now been getting just short of $100/month from them. The original company was bought by another one, but thanks to the Fed laws, the checks keep coming.

                      (I know, small change, but then I only worked for them just a bit more than five years.)

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                      • #12
                        Re: Do you work for a company that has a pension plan?

                        Originally posted by na alii
                        I'm one of the few that works for a company that provides a non contributory pension plan and an optional 401K plan. So when I retire I collect 66% of my salary plus what ever I contributed to my 401K and Social Security.
                        Wow. 66% of salary for a non contributory plan huge. Under my current plan (non contrib) it will take over 52 years to get that percentage. Even under a contributory variant availabe to me, it would take 33 years.

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