Retirement Plans

Retirement Plans: How Secure is Your Future?

 

When Mike Montagna, 47, of Pittston, Pa., reaches retirement age, he'll receive his monthly pension checks not from Techneglas, where he worked for 27 years, but from the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC), the federal agency that insures traditional retirement plans.

 

Techneglas, which made television glass, filed for bankruptcy protection in 3004, leaving the PBGC to pick up $70 million in liabilities from its retirement plan, which was only 40% funded.

 

Montagna, who is married and has three children, had planned to continue at Techneglas until he was too old to keep working. Instead, he finds himself trying to start over. He was just three years shy of the 30 years of service needed to immediately begin collecting retirement benefits however at a much-reduced rate.

 

Now, he won't collect payments until he's 65, if, as he says, the PBGC still has funding at that time.

 

The PBGC paid out more than $500 million in benefits to 78,000 people in Pennsylvania, which has more federally run pension plans than any other state.
From 2000 to 2004 alone, the PBGC took over nearly 600 corporate retirement plans. In addition, thousands of companies have been closing fully funded plans or freezing benefits, according to the PBGC. That means workers get the benefits they've earned but can't accrue more, while new hires don't have access to a pension plan.

 

Because benefit payments starting at ages other than 65 are adjusted actuarially, the maximum guaranteed benefit is lower for those who retire early or when there is a benefit for a survivor. Likewise, the maximum guaranteed benefit is higher for those who retire after age 65. Additionally, the PBGC will not fully guarantee benefit improvements that were adopted within the five-year period prior to a plan's termination or benefits that are not payable over a retiree's lifetime.

 

The amount guaranteed is based on years of service. For plans that terminate after December 21, 2000, the PBGC insures 100% of the first $11 monthly payment per year of service and 75% of the next $33 monthly payment per year of service.

 

For example, if a participant works 20 years in a plan that promises $19 per month per year of service, the PBGC guarantee would be $340 per month.
One person that I know was forced to retire when his company closed after 30 years of service. His retirement plan provides him with a monthly retirement benefit check of $30.00. That's right, one dollar per month for each year of service.

 

Because of atrocities like these people need to have alternative plans to supplement or replace their streams of retirement income.

 

While many people are compelled to return to traditional employment the find themselves having to accept minimum wage jobs from employers who expect them to perform like a mule hauling coal cars from the mine.

 

Others are entering the fast growing Internet home business industry however with high failure rates and many non performing opportunities they find themselves working harder just to support lead brokers and recruitment qualifications.

 

At the end of February this year Tom Prendergast, CEO Inetekk released his plan to change the way business is conducted on the Internet by eliminating the need to recruit distributors and cut off the need to buy leads.

 

Prendergast calls his business model "It's Good Business" and it has been receiving rave reviews not only in the United States but also from a number of increasing countries around the globe.

 

Within the first 90 days It's Good Business has continued to break all records. It has cracked the code and compressed the time needed to reach highest levels of compensation from years to months.

 

It's Good Business has generated over $100,000 per month which team members use to grow their business. "It's Good Business has zero tolerance for failure" says noted economist Dr Raymond Jewell.

 

It's Good business uses a strategic team approach to build a viable business where no one is left behind. For complete information on how It's Good Business could change your life and improve your retirement plans visit http://itsgoodbusiness.net