ALSO INSIDE
Cover
Spreading the Risk
Recent volatility may lead some sponsors to consider risk transfer for their pension plans.
Editorial
Buffer Zones
Pension plans have long helped retirees stave off the financial uncertainties of retirement—but unprecedented levels of market volatility and more stringent and intrusive accounting requirements have made it increasingly difficult for plan sponsors to insulate their own financials from those uncertainties.
IMHO
Projection Screen?
More than the subtleties of the law, the nuances of crafting a cogent legal brief, and the humiliations that often accompany the public exercise of the Socratic method, the most intimidating aspect of my law school experience—certainly in the first year—was the grading. In the vast majority of my classes, there were no papers, no mid-term, no pop quizzes; in fact, no tangible means of measuring progress vis-à-vis the expectations of the course. Indeed, in the vast majority of courses, it came down to a single final exam.
UpFront
Ratio Nulled?
Number of public-plan retirees growing faster than active participantsMatch Less?
Study indicates auto-enrollment plans have lower matchImmediate "Gratification"?
Most plans now permit immediate eligibility: PSCAExtended Care
Subsidy boosts COBRA enrollments."Early" Burrs?
Early retirees prove to be vexing part of retiree health.
War Stories
War Stories - February 2010
We all have them: those front-line experiences that are inevitable when one deals with the variety—and sensitivity—of issues associated with human beings and critical life events. Sometimes those stories are tragic, sometimes they are bizarre, and sometimes—admit it—they are just plain funny.
Survey Says
Are You Happier Now?
With 2009 still fresh in everyone’s minds, in mid-January, I asked NewsDash
readers, “Do you feel happier/better off than you were at this time last year?” The answers were—as you might expect—varied.
Bells & Whistles
Bells and Whistles - January 2010
Each month, Bells & Whistles highlights recent product introductions that plan sponsors may find of interest. More information on these announcements can be found onwww.plansponsor.com
. If you have a product announcement that you believe would be of interest to our readers, drop us a line at news@plansponsor.com.
Feature
A New Normal
Lessons learned: Transition management changes in the wake of 2008.
Head of the Class
All Eyes on China
Is it "over" over there?
Running the Fund
The DB(k)'s Day Arrives
Small employers could offer it as of January 1, but...Electric "Avenue"
PBGC premiums can be filed electronically now.
Case Sensitive
Damage Controlled?
Randal E. McCullough v. AEGON USA, Inc., et al., No. 08-1952An Employer Trade Group's Perspective
In reaching its ruling in McCullough, the 8th Circuit panel considered, among other materials, a friend-of-the-court brief filed by a trade group representing mostly large employers, the American Benefits Council (ABC).
Barry's Pickings
Generation Hexed?
In the spirit of a modest proposal.
Saxon Angle
"Tunnel" Vision
Cash balance plan sponsors still looking for clarity
Just out of Reish
Analyze This
Cost benefit analysis requires a long view.