LiUNA! Laborers International Union of North America - www.liuna.org

Emergency Action is Needed to Protect Retirement Security

LIUNA is urging President Bush to sign a bill granting emergency relief for multiemployer pension funds. The bill was passed by Congress and unlike the Wall Street bailout isn't a hand-out - just simply time for the economic crisis to ease and for investments to recover.

• The historic collapse of the global economy in recent months has taken a serious toll on pension funds.
• Funding rules passed by Congress in the Pension Protection Act of 2006 did not anticipate our economic crisis.
• Under the Pension Protection Act, funds are rated based on funding levels and categorized as in green, yellow or red status - plans that are given a yellow or red status are required to make benefit cuts and/or raise contribution rates.
• Pension funds that fall into yellow or red status are not allowed to repeal any benefit cuts or contribution increases even if investment markets recover and a fund's asset levels return to normal.
• Due to the economic crisis, many funds will fall from green status into yellow or red.

To protect workers and employers, LIUNA is calling for emergency action to temporarily freeze the current status of pension funds.

• Forcing employers to raise contribution rates at a time of economic uncertainty will lead to wage cuts for workers and add to America's skyrocketing unemployment.
• Reducing benefits undermines hard-earned retirement security when working people are already struggling.
• Many funds already increased contributions and cut benefits in response to the collapse of investment markets.
• Additional contribution increases and benefit cuts will be devastating to working people who depend on retirement security and responsible employers who contribute to their pensions.

Congress acted quickly to bailout Wall Street. They should act fast to protect the retirement security of working men and women. If they don't, we'll be faced with seeking relief before the Pension Guarantee Benefit Corporation - something no one wants to see happen.

• LIUNA is leading a coalition of labor and management to urge the President to sign emergency relief for pension funds before the end of 2008.
• A temporary suspension of the funding rules will allow multiemployer pension funds to survive our economic crisis.
• Working people and employers need emergency action to protect retirement security.