UNITED STATES
The Wall Street Journal
By ELLEN E. SCHULTZ
If your pension plan is underfunded, you could be at risk of losing some of your benefits. That isn’t news. But did you know that your pension can be at risk even if the plan is relatively healthy?
Something as seemingly innocuous as having a lump-sum payout provision, or even having a religious affiliation, could mean your benefits are vulnerable. Here are some red flags to look for, and some ways to protect yourself. …
Your employer gets religion.
Over the past decade, more than 100 employers—including hospitals, schools, nursing homes, universities, clinics and religious charities—have been claiming their pension plans are actually “church plans,” a largely unregulated pension category that generally covers clergy and lay employees of churches, synagogues, mosques and other houses of worship.
Church plans are exempt from federal pension rules, including those that require employers to fund the plans and insure them with the PBGC. This puts participants at tremendous risk.
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