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BLUE BELL, Pa., Dec. 18, 2020 /PRNewswire/ Unisys Corporation (NYSE: UIS) today announced it has completed a lump-sum, cash-out offer for eligible former associates who have deferred vested benefits under the company s U.S. pension plans and have elected to receive the value of their entire pension benefit in a lump-sum payment.
Earlier in 2020, the company reduced its required U.S. pension contributions and deficit by contributing approximately $800 million to its U.S. pension plans. Including its intended voluntary 2021 contributions of up to $200 million and based on the latest available actuarial estimates, the company will have effectively pre-funded all but approximately $50 million of its future required U.S. pension contributions.
Many terminated or furloughed employees have taken early retirement, curtailing contributions and raising payout obligations.
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“The Impact of COVID-19 on Retirement Plans,” a webinar hosted by the American Academy of Actuaries Pension Practice Council, explored how the coronavirus pandemic has affected various types of pension plans.
Linda Stone, senior pension fellow, American Academy of Actuaries, said, “Equity markets have recovered following a significant downturn during the first quarter of 2020. Year-to-date through November 30, U.S. equities have returned 15%. However, that has been offset by interest rates falling to historic lows. As a result, long-term corporate bond yields are down 70 basis points [bps] year-to-date through November 30.”
Want to Create a Retirement Paycheck? Here Are Some Things to Consider
Dear Carrie: I just retired and am trying to figure out how to maximize all of my resources Social Security, a small pension, and my investments. Given RMDs, taxes, etc., it feels overwhelming! Can you help? A Reader
Dear Reader: This is a great question because it’s an essential issue for every retiree. After decades of receiving a regular paycheck, suddenly you’re faced with having to figure out the best way to pull money from your different accounts whether that’s a 401(k), an IRA, or a regular investment account. On top of that, you need to make decisions about Social Security and possibly a pension or annuity.
A Conversation With a Union Pension Funding Advocate
One outspoken advocate for the Butch Lewis Act says the time is ripe for addressing the funding challenges faced by union sponsored multiemployer pension plans.
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Russell Kamp, managing director at Ryan ALM, recently sat down for a wide-ranging discussion with PLANSPONSOR in which he spoke in no uncertain terms about the need to immediately address the union multiemployer pension funding crisis.
For context, Ryan ALM’s stated mission is to solve liability-driven problems faced by pensions and other institutional investors through the provision of “low-cost, low-risk solutions.” Additionally, Kamp himself was on the team of government and industry professionals that drafted the Butch Lewis Act. That legislation would, among other features, provide funds for 30-year loans and new forgivable financial assistance, in the form of government grants, aimed at supporting the most financially troubled multiemployer pens
Court Rules Pensions Can’t Exist in a State of Limbo
In ‘most unusual case,’ judges back PBGC and find that someone must be held responsible for a pension even if the sponsor is long gone.
The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled in a “most unusual case” that a company that went bankrupt and dissolved in the 1990s was still liable for its pension’s obligations 20 years later.
The case centers on Chicago area-based Liberty Lighting Co. Inc, a unionized electrical supply manufacturing company and plan sponsor and administrator of the Liberty Lighting Co. Inc. Pension Plan for IBEW Employees. According to court documents, Liberty entered bankruptcy and surrendered its assets to a creditor in 1992, and it was dissolved under state law.