Private Pension Plans

Almost all private retirement plans are required to comply with federal pension and tax laws. There is only one major exception: Church pension plans. Employees covered by church pension plans are denied the basic protections provided to virtually all other private-sector workers who participate in pension plans.

Below is a list of employers that have announced significant changes to their defined benefit pension plans since December 2005. Changes include plan terminations, plan freezes for new and/or current employees, and changes to the formula by which pension benefits are calculated.

Starting in 2008 some underfunded pension plans sponsored by a single employer became subject to restrictions on benefits. These benefit restrictions were implemented by the Pension Protection Act of 2006 (PPA), which Congress passed to shore up the funding of traditional private sector defined benefit pension plans. This fact sheet explains the four basic benefit restrictio

See our list of companies that have frozen or made significant changes to their pension plans.