Pension protection: why are private pensions not placed in a trust and insured by a portion of their earnings
Posted: under Pensions.
Tags: Current, Lost, Pension Fund, Pension Protection, Play Game
Steve C asked:
Millions and millions are beginning to find out that the pensions they worked for all their lives have just vanished! Under current law, if the employer goes out of business there is no recourse; if the union mishandles the pension funds there is no recourse; if the stock market takes a dive and pension funds are lost there is no recourse. American is aging; by 2020 over half the population will be over 65 years of age. Yet we allow the pensions of America’s workers to be placed in jeopardy. This makes no sense to me at all. The current set of laws allows employers and unions to play a shall game with pension funds. The employer gets a tax deduction merely for “earmarking” pension funds without having to actually part with the cash.
Millions and millions are beginning to find out that the pensions they worked for all their lives have just vanished! Under current law, if the employer goes out of business there is no recourse; if the union mishandles the pension funds there is no recourse; if the stock market takes a dive and pension funds are lost there is no recourse. American is aging; by 2020 over half the population will be over 65 years of age. Yet we allow the pensions of America’s workers to be placed in jeopardy. This makes no sense to me at all. The current set of laws allows employers and unions to play a shall game with pension funds. The employer gets a tax deduction merely for “earmarking” pension funds without having to actually part with the cash.
I think it’s time this country treated pension funds as employment taxes and had employers make deposits in to secure trusts, insured by part of the earnings. No more of this paying in to the union pension fund!
Antonio
Comments (2)
Feb 15 2008