Authors William Wolman and Anne Colamosca believe the recent problems are just the beginning
JULY 29, 2002, BUSINESSWEEK INVESTOR -- RETIREMENT GUIDE
For people who are approaching retirement, 401(k) plans haven't yet proven to be the wealth-creating machines many had hoped. Steep and prolonged declines in stocks have eaten away at many people's retirement savings. Companies like Enron -- which not only encouraged employees to put the bulk of their savings in company stock but also blocked them from withdrawing it when the company started to implode -- have sparked worry that company- sponsored 401(k) plans are far less beneficial than they seem.
And, of course, most employees now realize their retirement income is more uncertain with a 401(k) than it would have been with the so-called defined benefit plans popular in the past -- where employers promised to provide a set monthly pension, no matter what.
In the midst of this crisis of confidence comes The Great 401(k) Hoax: Why Your Family's Financial Security Is at Risk, and What You Can Do About It, by William Wolman and Anne Colamosca (Perseus Press).
The book contends that the woes now plaguing 401(k)s are just the beginning. In the introduction, reprinted below, the authors contend that this "ugly combination of letters and numbers" will prove to be "the greatest systemic financial hoax ever perpetrated on an unsuspecting public."
Wolman (a senior contributing economics editor at BusinessWeek) and Colamosca have a strong point of view that (thankfully) hasn't yet been borne out by the facts. But it's well worth considering as Corporate America comes under increasing scrutiny. full http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SP-campaign/message/1164
===== Kevin Dean Buffalo, NY ICQ: 8616001 AIM: KDean75206 Buffalo Activist Network http://www.buffaloactivist.net http://www.yaysoft.com
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