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April 9, 2003 - 13,076 subscribers
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"Primer on Defined Benefit Plans" audio conference April 23, 2003 * What are the key issues in administering defined benefit plans? * What are the different types of defined benefit plans and how can an organization benefit from the different types of plans? * What's all the fuss with cash balance plans? * Plus - you'll get answers to your tough questions at the end of the audio conference. Charles D. Lockwood, J.D. and LL.M. (Taxation) will bring you up-to-speed with the answers to these questions and more.
(Please visit our sponsors. We try to make sure their products and services will be of interest to you. Thanks! --Editor)
IRS Finalizes 204(h) Notice Regulations
Excerpt: "A number of comments addressed what constitutes a reasonable period for providing a section 204(h) notice.... The [45 day advance notice requirement] in the proposed regulations was designed to strike a balance between providing participants with sufficient time to understand and consider the information in the notice and allowing employers to effect changes in their plans for business reasons within a reasonable time, and has been retained in the final regulations." (Internal Revenue Service)
Honda Breaks Pension Taboo by Hiking UK Staff Retirement Age to 62
Excerpt: "The car company said the UK staff pension fund was so deep in the red that it was unilaterally raising the staff retirement age from 60 to 62. All employees under 55 would have to work an extra two years to qualify for full pension entitlement.... The blow has been more severe for older staff for whom retirement was almost in sight. 'One of my workmates is 53. He feels very aggrieved. He had very definite plans. Working till 62 wasn't one of them.'" (The [London, England] Daily Standard via NewsAlert.com)
House-Passed Bill Allows Postal Service to Slow Pension Funding; Will Hold Down Stamp Prices
Excerpt: "The Postal Service asked Congress for permission to reduce payments into the Civil Service Retirement Fund last year after an Office of Personnel Management analysis showed that the agency was on course to overfund its pension obligations by $71 billion." (Washington Post)
Hearings to Debate Cash Balance Plans
Excerpt: "Employee activists from across the USA urged Congress Tuesday to enact legislation protecting workers at companies that switch to controversial cash-balance pension plans." (USA Today)
Governmental Pension Overhaul Battle Looms in Massachusetts
Excerpt: "Massachusetts lawmakers, many of them members of the state's retirement system, are lining up to oppose Governor Mitt Romney's proposal to overhaul the program." (The Boston Globe)
Chicago Sun-Times Continues Examination of Gov't Employee 'Double Dipping'
Excerpt: "The treasurer of an obscure township agency retired last fall with one of the richest government pensions in Illinois after he reportedly was paid an extra $103,000-- more than 70 percent of his annual salary.... And who pays for that? Taxpayers in 14 southwest suburban school districts, including Alsip, Blue Island, Chicago Ridge, Evergreen Park and Oak Lawn, served by the office of Worth Township school treasurer." (Chicago Sun-Times)
British Firm Awards Higher Pay Increases to Workers in Money Purchase Plan vs. Those in DB Plan
Excerpt: "A British employer has taken the unprecedented step of awarding lower pay rises to those of its employees who are on more generous pension arrangements. The Financial Services Authority is giving a 4.2 percent pay rise to staff in its guaranteed 'final-salary' pension scheme, while those in the riskier 'money purchase' pension scheme are getting 6.7 percent. It is thought to be the first time an employer has discriminated in this way ..." (The [London, England] Daily Standard via NewsAlert.com)
Better Data Needed From Employer Plans To Predict Future Retirees' Retirement Income Needs
In a recent report, the General Accounting Office (GAO) asserted that experts need better data from employer-sponsored plans in order to predict the retirement income needs of future retirees. The report, Retirement Income Data: Improvements Could Better Support Analysis of Future Retirees' Prospects (GAO-03-337), was prepared at the request of Rep. Robert E. Andrews (N.J.). (SpencerNet)
Another Question is Answered in the Who's the Employer Q&A Column
When is a member of an LLC considered self-employed? Suppose Ilene is a member of an LLC who manages its staff, calculates payroll and does general accounting but does not get paid for her time. She has no IRS Form 1099 or W-2. Is she considered an employee, self-employed or just a member who works for free? (BenefitsLink.com)
Links to Items on Executive Comp, Benefits in General
Commentary: You're Fired. Here's Your $16 Million.
Excerpt: "While many Americans are cashing their final unemployment checks and wondering how they'll pay next month's bills, the top brass at our nation's biggest companies could hardly pick a better time to be laid off." (Michael Brush on MSN Money)
Many Severance Packages for CEOs Still Huge
Excerpt: "Despite a rash of new corporate-governance guidelines, failed chief executives are still reaping huge severance deals when they are forced out." (The Wall Street Journal via the San Francisco Chronicle)
Nonqualified Deferred Compensation Plans Fuel Job, Corporate Growth Says Council Paper
Press release; includes a link to the full text of the paper. Excerpt: "[T]he American Benefits Council submitted its newly released paper, Nonqualified Deferred Compensation: An Important Source of Retirement Income, to help explain these plans' important role as a source of retirement income and capital funding and as a critical workforce recruitment tool. The document was prepared for the Council by Brigen Winters of the Groom Law Group." (American Benefits Council)
Senators Fault Consultants for Providing Deferred Comp Advice to Enron
Excerpt: "A recent report by the House-Senate Joint Committee on Taxation detailed evidence of Enron's use of complex transactions to lop millions of dollars off its federal tax bill, inflate its earnings and pay top executives lavishly. The revelations also threw a new spotlight on the big accounting firms, investment banks and law firms that advised the energy-trading company on the schemes that pushed the legal envelope." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Working for Uncle Sam: Overview of Pay and Benefits
Excerpt: "In many cases the total value of this compensation may substantially exceed the value of a private sector employer's offering, even if the basic government salary is lower." (Washington Post)
Computer Chipmaker to Allow Employees to Swap Options for Stock
Excerpt: "The company said it will award as much as $162 million in stock to employees. They'll get the shares in exchange for old stock options that are nearly worthless because Broadcom's stock has plunged 94 percent over three years." (The Orange County [Calif.] Register)
Mammoth Pension Fund Shareholder Pushes GE to Use Performance-Based Stock Options
Excerpt: "California Public Employees' Retirement System, the nation's largest public pension fund, asked General Electric Co. shareholders on Tuesday to vote for a resolution demanding the company use performance-based stock options, rather than regular options, as a form of compensation." (New York Times; one-time registration required)
Newly Posted or Renewed Job Openings
Retirement Plan Services Representative
for American Funds
in IN
Account Executive
for Transamerica-The Winning Organization
in CA
Communication Specialist
for Principal Financial Group
in CA
Newly Posted Webcasts
(Post Yours!)
The Future of Executive Compensation & Benefits
on April 17, 2003
presented by Clark/Bardes Consulting
Newly Posted Conferences
(Post Yours!)
Certificate in Compensation
in NY
May 15, 2003
International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans
Certificate in Workplace Learning and Environment
in NY
May 15, 2003
International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans
Newly Posted Press Releases
(Post Yours!)
ICMA Retirement Corporation's Vantagepoint Memorial Scholarship Program Aids Children of Fallen Firefighters
(ICMA Retirement Corporation)
Handy Links:
- View Today's Active Message Threads
- Search BenefitsLink
- Using the Web for Employee Benefits Research
- Employee Benefits Library
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