PRC In the News
01/16/14|U.S. News

How to Monitor Your Pension’s Health

You paid into a pension system. It will pay out for you … right? Maybe. As illustrated by Detroit’s municipal bankruptcy and the threatened implosion of its pension plans, not to mention routine corporate bankruptcies, pensions can’t be taken for granted.

PRC In the News
01/15/14|AARP Bulletin

Timing of Fiduciary Rule for Retirement Plans Questioned

If you have a 401(k) or other retirement plan, you may be waiting even longer before new government standards are imposed that require your financial adviser to act in your best interest.

PRC In the News
01/14/14|Investment News

House Democrats urge caution on DOL fiduciary-duty rule

A group of 30 House Democrats has warned Labor Secretary Thomas Perez that a pending rule that would raise investment advice standards for retirement-plan advisers could hurt investors with modest assets.

PRC In the News
12/17/13|Bloomberg BNA Pension & Benefits Reporter

House Approves Budget Agreement That Includes Hikes in PBGC Premiums

Defined benefit plan pension insurance premiums would be increased by Congress for the second time in less than two years under a new budget compromise reached by the heads of the House and Senate Budget committees, with the premium provisions projected to cut federal spending by nearly $8 billion over 10 years. [PDF]

PRC In the News
12/16/13|Pensions & Investments

Federal court rejects church plan status for Dignity Health

In the first decision among five major class-action lawsuits challenging church-affiliated sponsors of defined benefit plans, a federal judge found that ERISA rules do apply.

PRC In the News
12/12/13|The Thom Hartmann Program (via truth-out.org) [audio and transcript]

America’s Pensions Are Under Attack, and More

…In screwed news… America’s pensions are under attack.  Politicians, corporations, and even our courts are all chipping away at retirement benefits and promised healthcare that workers paid into throughout their careers. 

Blogs & Newsletters
12/11/13

Motor City Madness

You’ve probably already heard that a judge has decided to allow the city of Detroit to file for Chapter 9 bankruptcy, which would make the Motor City the largest municipality in the country to do so. The judge also ruled that pensions for the city’s workers and retirees can be cut as part of the […]

PRC In the News
12/11/13|Alternet via Salon

Retirement crisis grows as cities raid pension and health plans

Across America, states, counties and cities are taking steps that will make retirement for ex-public employees much harsher. Courts, politicans and corporations are all working together to chip away at deferred wages: reducing pensions or eliminating promised healthcare, or both. Said simply, they’re looting retirements and pushing people toward poverty.

Press Release
12/06/13

PRC on the Detroit Bankruptcy: Allowing Cuts to Retirees’ Pensions is “Unprecedented and Unconscionable”

The Pension Rights Center released a statement reacting to Judge Steven Rhodes’ decision to permit the city of Detroit to reduce pensions by entering Chapter 9 bankruptcy: “The decision to let Detroit’s bankruptcy move forward means that Emergency Manager Kevyn Orr can proceed with his plan to cut the pensions of the city’s workers and […]

PRC In the News
11/22/13|Daily Kos

Lord, won’t you buy me a new pension plan

Lord, won’t you buy me a new pension plan My 401(k) savings fit in a tin can I need me some money so I can survive Or I’ll be living in my old Porsche when I’m 65 The foregoing is excerpted from a speech given by Karen Friedman, Executive Vice President and Policy Director of […]

PRC In the News
11/22/13|BenefitsPro

Coalition working to expand retirement security for uncovered

A coalition of large retirement industry players, including the AARP, American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees, Service Employees International Union and Pension Rights Center, have banded together to find new ways to build retirement security for even the lowest-income workers.

Speeches & Statements
11/21/13

Speech by Karen Friedman to the Texas Municipal Retirement System (November 19, 2013)

On November 19, 2013, PRC’s Karen Friedman delivered the keynote speech at the Texas Municipal Retirement System’s annual meeting in Austin, TX. Below are her remarks.   Hello, I’m Karen Friedman, the Executive Vice President and Policy Director of the Pension Rights Center. Before I begin today, I wanted to tell you that, in anticipation […]