Are you going to retire in poverty? Today’s seniors are more affluent than the general population. But the generations that follow them – starting with the baby boom generation – will not be as fortunate. The decline of pensions, the erosion of Social Security and the housing crash all are pointing toward a new crisis [...] [...more]
Leon LaBrecque is one busy financial planner these days. Based in suburban Detroit, LaBrecque has been meeting non-stop this summer with retirees from Ford Motor Co. and General Motors to help guide them through one of most important financial decisions of their lives: whether to accept a lump sum buyout of their pensions. Both auto [...] [...more]
Ford Motor Company’s ads urge you to “swap your ride,” but the auto giant also has a swap in mind for 90,000 former employees: a voluntary buyout of their pensions. Ford is offering lump sum payouts to salaried retirees and former workers–a move aimed at cutting pension liabilities and balance sheet volatility. The huge buyout [...] [...more]
The message from voters about public pension plans is clear: They’re ready to cut the retirement benefits of police, firefighters, teachers and other state and municipal workers. The latest indicators include the failed recall of Gov. Scott Walker in Wisconsin – which started with his efforts to cut pensions – and referendums in San Jose [...] [...more]
News today that General Motors Co. will jettison nearly 25 percent of its U.S. pension obligation comes on the heels of a similar move by Ford Motor Co. GM plans to reduce its defined benefit pension obligations to white collar workers through a combination of lump-sum buyouts and by transferring management of other pensions to a division [...] [...more]
