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Defined Benefit Plans
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Pension shortfalls a stark corporate challenge
January 30, 2012With worries about the debt crisis in Europe and high unemployment in the United States drawing the public's attention, the sliding value of corporate pension funds has largely gone unnoticed.
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Plan sponsors can learn from experience with defined benefit plans
January 30, 2012The ongoing shift from defined benefit (DB) to defined contribution (DC) plans has prompted the financial services industry to rapidly develop products that deliver a steady stream of retirement income, one of the biggest shortcomings with DC plans. While numerous retirement income products are hitting the marketplace, employers and regulators are grappling with how they fit within qualified retirement plans.
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Global pension fund assets hit record high in 2011
January 30, 2012According to the Global Pension Assets Study released today by Towers Watson, defined benefit fund assets grew by 54% in 2011, while pension fund balance sheets weakened, showing a need for different default options.
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Employers doubtful about workers’ ability to adequately prepare for retirement
January 26, 2012As the economy continues to falter, employers have become increasingly reticent about their employees' ability to successfully save for retirement, according to a new survey by Aon Hewitt. In response, employers are creating solutions to help rethink their retirement benefits plan strategies and assist their employees in better preparing for retirement.
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U.S. workers’ financial situation and confidence in retirement security improve
January 19, 2012U.S. employees’ confidence in their ability to retire comfortably continued to rebound last year. However, despite growing satisfaction with their financial situation and fewer employees reporting significant declines in retirement savings, many employees remain concerned and are taking steps to get their financial houses in order, according to a new survey by Towers Watson.
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More pension plans count down to year-end mark
January 3, 2012Tom Adams, chief financial officer of cigarette-maker RAI Inc, will be keenly focused on the stock market on Friday, not with his company's share price in mind, but rather with the fate of his pension plan's portfolio.
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Retirement pros have questions for candidates
January 3, 2012The Republican Party has staged a mind-numbing 18 presidential debates this year, and more questions and answers lie ahead as the primaries and general election get into high gear in the new year.
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Pension plans increase use of liability-driven investing
December 19, 2011The use of liability-driven investment strategies — where a plan’s assets are matched more closely to its future liabilities — has more than tripled in the past five years, according to a recent survey of pension executives by SEI.
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Volatility continues to drive pension plan decision making
December 15, 2011Many corporate pension plan sponsors face a significant increase in pension contributions and expense in 2012, adversely affecting competitiveness, investment and job growth and possibly creating a further drag on corporate earnings and cash flow. That troubling outlook is the backdrop for the major concerns of 192 senior-level financial executives surveyed by Mercer and CFO Research Services.
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Non-traditional asset classes bolster DC plan performance in volatile times
December 7, 2011Traditionally, 401(k) investment menus have consisted of core asset classes such as U.S. stocks and investment-grade bonds. However, defined benefit plans have relied on a much broader range of asset classes and have historically outperformed defined contribution plans, says Bill McDermott, head of defined contribution services at Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
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Small business owners support lifetime pension benefits for private-sector employees
December 5, 2011The vast majority of small business owners (82%) support the concept behind a proposed new retirement plan that would provide their employees with a guaranteed monthly pension benefit for life after they stop working. And 69% say they would be interested in adopting such a retirement plan for their own businesses.
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Retirement plans in a quandary
December 1, 2011"What we've got here is a failure to communicate." That famous line, from the 1967 movie "Cool Hand Luke," summarizes the reason that retirement plans collectively - but unwillingly - hold billions of dollars that plan sponsors have unsuccessfully tried to distribute to former participants.
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Pension court ruling comes down, provides new guidance
October 21, 2011In Tomlinson v. El Paso Corporation, the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit recently held that El Paso Corporation’s transition to a cash balance pension plan did not violate federal anti-age discrimination and pension laws. In doing so, the court offered important guidance to employers that provide pension benefits to their employees. …
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Grass is greener: Public employers look to emulate private-sector retirement benefit strategy
October 5, 2011To fix their persistent pension problems, some U.S. states are looking to reshape their retirement plans to resemble those in the private sector, but they may find many employees resistant and the savings elusive.
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Employers encouraged to supply more to multiemployer pension plans
September 26, 2011The Financial Accounting Standards Board has released a new Accounting Standards Update aimed at improving employer disclosures for multiple-employer pension plans.
