defined benefit plans

Washington Lawmakers' Pensions: The Envy of a Nation

For all the talk you hear from Capitol Hill about running government more like a business, Congress has a retirement plan that would make any Fortune 500 executive blush.

Should You Accept a Pension Buyout Offer?

Recently, 90,000 former Ford workers got an interesting offer: They could trade monthly pension benefits for a lump sum of cash. Are such offers a good deal? That depends quite a lot on who you are.

Why Young Workers Want a Good Old-Fashioned Pension

The conventional wisdom is that young people today expect they'll change employers repeatedly, and thus don't really care about pensions. But it turns out the conventional wisdom is wrong. With 401(k)s looking less secure, a defined-benefit plan is a real lure for younger workers.

People@Work: Now, Governments Are Shifting Pension Burdens Onto Workers

During the past three decades, businesses of all sizes have shifted away from traditional defined-benefit plans to defined-contribution plans, also known as 401(k)s. Now, states and local governments are doing the same, even though many workers lack the necessary investing savvy.