On Jun 25, 2006, at 10:08 AM, Doug Henwood wrote:
>
> Wall Street Journal - June 23, 2006
>
>
> Hidden Burden
> As Workers' Pensions Wither,
> Those for Executives Flourish
> Companies Run Up Big IOUs,
> Mostly Obscured, to Grant
> Bosses a Lucrative Benefit
> The Billion-Dollar Liability
> By ELLEN E. SCHULTZ and THEO FRANCIS
> June 23, 2006; Page A1
> To help explain its deep slump, General Motors Corp. often cites
> "legacy costs," including pensions for its giant U.S. work force.
> In its latest annual report, GM wrote: "Our extensive pension and
> [post-employment] obligations to retirees are a competitive
> disadvantage for us." Early this year, GM announced it was ending
> pensions for 42,000 workers.
>
> But there's a twist to the auto maker's pension situation: The
> pension plans for its rank-and-file U.S. workers are overstuffed
> with cash, containing about $9 billion more than is needed to meet
> their obligations for years to come.
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