GE Saves $3.3 Billion With Cuts to Retirees' Life, Health Benefits http://www.thestreet.com/story/1323...e-health-benefits.html?puc=yahoo&cm_ven=YAHOO So you decided to spend your entire life working for a single company, joined the union, after 30 years you are months away from retiring, and you find out your retirement benefits JUST got cut from the new union contract... so who do you blame, the company you gave 30 years of your life to, or the union you paid dues to for 30 years? who is more or less at fault? the one who employed you, or the one who was supposed to protect you? how unfair is it for someone who spent all those years and now you just got less than you ever thought you were going to, and with rising healthcare costs, this is a HUGE deal for those retirees... I mean thats going to be your greatest expense throughout your entire retirement... but yeah I was just curious how people felt about this, since clearly not just the company, but unions BOTH had to agree on this, and 51% of the members had to vote on this... so is this an instance where the 49% closer to retirement all rejected this, and the younger 51% voted just to be able to keep their jobs, pitting them against each other...
It's interesting how the "Affordable Care Act" keeps rearing its ugly head through your article. Perhaps, the company and the union aren't solely to blame for these cuts (?)...
Agreed. Companies will do what they have to do to survive and thrive in the face of such excessive govt overreach as the ACA. And unions have long been way overrated and often do more harm than good IMO to both companies and workers - just look at what unions did to the US auto industry. The same can often be said for pensions - as people are living longer and longer, it's getting harder for companies and governments to provide lifetime pay and benefits to retired workers.
Nothing new here. It is basically the same as Walmart teaching employees how to file for food stamps. Companies will always try to cut their expenses if they know big gov´t will pick up the slack. But this also goes back to the 1960s and 1970s when unions were way to strong and basically strangled a lot of industries ( autos, airlines). Pick your poison.. you want unions strangling businesses with excessive benefits? or you want taxpayers paying for it through ACA. It is a no win situation
This is why you never trust anyone or any organization with your financial independence. I do feel bad for these folks, but let it be a lesson to the younger people. At the end of the day, you are the only person on this planet who will be looking our for yourself. Don't expect the government or corporations to be there for you in a time of need.
Yep, anyone below the age of 50 who thinks social security is going to help them during retirement is kidding themselves. Until young people start voting on this issue, there is no chance it lasts. But young voters aren´t even thinking of that issue.
I totally agree. Yes, pensions can help in a retiree's daily needs but they sure are not enough to afford them the comfortable and worry=free life they deserve. These pensions can only be considered extra money for retirees but the real economic stability comes from years of saving and investing for the future. It is indeed a lesson for the younger generation to not only depend on retirement benefits for their old age but to save and grow their money as much as they can while they are still young and able to work.