Defined Benefits

Supreme Court decisions, crackdowns by the Department of Labor and a shift in the political balance of power were among the big stories on the retirement front. And 2015 promises even more.

The National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans says the amendment gives multiemployer pension plans the tools they need to head off insolvency and preserve retiree benefits for decades to come.

The sweep of the pension reforms adopted as part of the federal governments spending bill left a lot of interested parties surprised.

The Senate begins debate on a $1.1 trillion U.S. government spending bill today after turmoil in the House yielded narrow passage of the plan amid opposition from Democrats and Republicans alike.

Congressional legislation would allow cuts in a handful of troubled plans, but critics fear more cuts are next

Barnes & Noble Inc. is hoping to close the books on its terminated defined benefit plan by offering a lump-sum payment to 2,350 active and terminated employees remaining on the books.

The pension reform amendment would help the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. remain solvent by letting ailing multiemployer pension plans cut retiree benefits.

Congress will vote Thursday on a $1.1 trillion spending plan that includes a provision to help out the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. Opponents say it'll hurt retirees.