Vanguard’s Rosy 401k Study Doesn’t Reflect Reality for Most Americans
By David Brandolph A recent study from Vanguard found that the employees participating in the 401k plans that the large financial institution serves as recordkeeper increased their contributions to record levels in 2023, and automatic plan enrollment is boosting participation for younger and lower income workers. According to Vanguard, from 2014 to 2023, contribution rates for […]
Labor Day: Time to Honor Workers and Strive for Their Secure Retirement
By David Brandolph On this Labor Day, the Pension Rights Center rededicates itself to preserving and enhancing the retirement income security of American workers who, through their toil and perseverance, built our country and keep it running. Today, we’re also celebrating the 50th anniversary of the landmark federal private pension law, the Employee Retirement Income […]
Come celebrate our continued commitment to retirement security for all!
ERISA is turning 50 and the Pension Rights Center will be 48. Come celebrate our continued commitment to retirement security for all! Wednesday, October 16, 2024 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm Planet Word Museum 925 13th Street NW Washington DC You won’t want to miss this night. There will be toasts along with good food […]
More Than One Million Pensions Protected by Butch Lewis Act
By David Brandolph The Butch Lewis Emergency Pension Plan Relief Act (BLA) – a law enacted in 2021 to save workers’ and retirees’ pensions in severely financially challenged multiemployer plans – has surpassed a high-water mark of success. Due to a recent flurry of special financial assistance (SFA) approvals, BLA has now facilitated the protection […]
Just Say No to Automatic E-Delivery of Your Retirement Plan Records
By David Brandolph I just received a troubling letter from my 401k plan. It said I would no longer receive my plan statements and other important plan notices and disclosure documents in the mail. Instead, the plan would from now on be sending emails telling me to log in to my account on its website […]
LGBTQ+ Americans Face Retirement Inequities
Pride Month is observed each June to mark the 1969 Stonewall Uprising that sparked the LGBTQ+ rights movement in the United States. Celebrations are centered around building community, recognizing the progress made towards equality, and honoring those who have made that progress possible. But Pride Month is also an opportunity to reflect on the work […]
Philadelphia Inquirer: Dozens of Wanamakers Employees Never Got Their Pensions
Former Wanamakers employee Bill Whiting started a Facebook group and found more than 40 others who didn’t get their pensions.
WSJ: His Ex Is Getting His $1 Million Retirement Account. They Broke Up in 1989.
“Inertia has the upper hand,” said Norman Stein, a law professor at Drexel University and senior policy adviser at the Pension Rights Center.
PRC Responds to Multi-Agency Request for Information on Reporting and Disclosure
The Pension Rights Center issued comments on May 22nd in response to a Request for Information from the Department of the Treasury, the IRS, the DOL, EBSA, and the PBGC on Section 319 of SECURE 2.0.
Bloomberg Law: Pending DOL Report to Consider Pension Risk Transfer Changes
“We look forward to seeing the report, which we very much hope will include PRC’s recommendations to strengthen protections for workers and retirees when companies transfer their pension liabilities to insurance companies,” said Karen Friedman, PRC’s executive director. “Plan participants lose a lot in these transactions—including valuable [Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation] insurance and other ERISA […]
PRC News, Spring 2024
New “No conflicts” Retirement Investment Rule Rolled Out Pension Rights Center Executive Director Karen Friedman joined other members of the Save Our Retirement Coalition at the White House in April for the Biden Administration’s announcement of a new U.S. Department of Labor rule to protect retirement income security. The rule requires that investment advice given […]
401(k)s Failing Most Americans, Politico Investigation Confirms
By David Brandolph The Pension Rights Center has long made the case that the U.S. retirement system is failing millions of workers who won’t have sufficient income for a dignified and secure retirement, as we’ve been reminding blog readers in recent posts. Billions of dollars in Congressionally authorized tax subsidies for contributions to self-directed retirement […]
