It Could Always Be Worse

[Operational needs]

You seem confused. You work and they pay you. Stop working and see how much money they continue to deposit in your accounts. Portable contributions are part of your compensation. It's not free. I'm not their employee and they don't deposit anything into my retirement accounts, so they're not just giving it away.

Thank you! It's funny how someone who isn't employed by FedEx gets it, but a long time employee doesn't. No one is complaining about the supposedly FREE money FedEx is giving us. We're complaining about the money (compensation) that Fedex took away and replaced with a crappy Portable Pension. I'll be getting mine, so I'm good, but what about everyone else who WON'T be getting a Traditional Pension?

 

[Operational needs]

Let me try to get through to him It's not free money. It's called.......DEFERRED COMPENSATION.

You won't get through to him. He's too dense.

 

[Oldfart]

You seem confused. You work and they pay you. Stop working and see how much money they continue to deposit in your accounts. Portable contributions are part of your compensation. It's not free. I'm not their employee and they don't deposit anything into my retirement accounts, so they're not just giving it away.

Portable is NOT part of your compensation. Portable is part of your BENEFITS. Same result, just different way of getting there. Just like your 401k match is a benefit, not compensation. Sounds like you need to read a financial book to get a definition of "free money". It is commonly used when describing money that is deposited by an employer into an account for the employee. It is just a term but the money did not come from your pocket and you did not pay taxes on it but you are the beneficiary.

 

[Oldfart]

You won't get through to him. He's too dense.

Or maybe I am just a little smarter than you to realize money in my pocket is a benefit, no matter how angry YOU are. I bet my entire pension you won't turn down that portable once you start receiving it. Portable or deferred compensation, however you want to term it, I am taking it when the time comes. You can refuse it because you don't agree with it.

 

[Oldfart]

People complain about the Portable. My portable will be close to 110k or to 115k when I retire. I can leave it in for a year or 2 and be close to 125k or 130k. That will be after being in it for 13 to 15 years. I was in the traditional for 24 years and my LUMP sum is about 115K. Sounds like my Portable was a better deal when you compare lump sums.

 

[Serf]

My estimation with inflation and the tax on the lump sum. 35 hours a week for 30 years. Sometimes a tad more when it gets busy. I can buy a new 2043 Volkswagen Golf GTI. Cash. Then I can live in it also.

 

[Oldfart]

Do people actually believe your pension is supposed to be your PRIMARY source of income when you retire? It is designed to be a PORTION of your retirement income. Pension and 401k and Roth and SS are supposed to be your retirement income projections. My Traditional will be about 1850 per month. Had I still been enrolled and not been in a Traditional, it MIGHT be 2200 or so a month. Not that big of difference. Instead, I still have that 1850 PLUS a 6 figure Portable. Before people say they don't have the traditional, you have to realize things change over time. More and more companies are having to reevaluate benefits. Fdx is no different. You cant worry about the way things USED to be. Only worry about how they are now. Most likely they won't be that way in the future. It sucks, but that is the way it is at MOST companies.

 

[bacha29]

No matter what definition you use or what category you dump it into you still come up with the same overall expense to X , the TOTAL cost of labor and as you can plainly see they are out to cut that cost using whatever means are at their disposal. Some of you have been there long enough to get above the Mendoza Line while those who have come on later are exposed to the various cost cutting measures. yet they will be the ones to be will be expected to go out there every day busting their butts for lower pay yet will still be expected to produce the cash and EPS needed to support the stock price and keep the pension money flowing in the years ahead. So the question is will the younger generation be willing to do it ? Only time will tell.

 

[Oldfart]

No matter what definition you use or what category you dump it into you still come up with the same overall expense to X , the TOTAL cost of labor and as you can plainly see they are out to cut that cost using whatever means are at their disposal. Some of you have been there long enough to get above the Mendoza Line while those who have come on later are exposed to the various cost cutting measures. yet they will be the ones to be will be expected to go out there every day busting their butts for lower pay yet will still be expected to produce the cash and EPS needed to support the stock price and keep the pension money flowing in the years ahead. So the question is will the younger generation be willing to do it ? Only time will tell.

Name 1 company today that isn't undergoing cost cutting measures. The BIG 4 automakers are a perfect example. Today's newhires are under a different payscale than older workers. Ford is moving jobs to Mexico and making changes in Louisville. I believe Toyota might make more cars in America than the DOMESTIC brands do. The Dow Company I used as an example. John Deer, Intl Harvester, Goodyear, all of them are UNION companies are changing pay scales and benefit packages. Today's climate is way different than it was 10 years ago. If you don't make changes and watch expenses, you will wind up like Sears, Woolco, TG &Y, American Apperal, American Motors. You can't live in the past. You better plan for the future or you might be in the unemployment line.

Just glance at the UPS forums. They are making changes to their benefits as well. Offering lump sum pension buyouts. No longer covering a spouse that has health insurance. It happens.

 

[bacha29]

Name 1 company today that isn't undergoing cost cutting measures. The BIG 4 automakers are a perfect example. Today's newhires are under a different payscale than older workers. Ford is moving jobs to Mexico and making changes in Louisville. I believe Toyota might make more cars in America than the DOMESTIC brands do. The Dow Company I used as an example. John Deer, Intl Harvester, Goodyear, all of them are UNION companies are changing pay scales and benefit packages. Today's climate is way different than it was 10 years ago. If you don't make changes and watch expenses, you will wind up like Sears, Woolco, TG &Y, American Apperal, American Motors. You can't live in the past. You better plan for the future or you might be in the unemployment line.

News Flash: Chrysler bought out American Motors ......THIRTY YEARS AGO. I was at the Chrysler Building the day it happened. A lot of excitement that day but now Fiat owns Chrysler. Now what completely UNRELATED entity have you not dragged in to this debate. ? Let's see, NASCAR The Catholic Church all of the companies you have listed above along with Dow Chemical, DuPont the sex toy industry Wendy's and on an on. Face it It's not a "different" pay scale .IT"S A LOWER ONE. Anytime one of those kids comes on talking about workplace experiences that in any way shape or form tarnish's the squeeky clean image of your beloved company , you're right there shaming then for doing what you never had the balls to do . It's called STANDING UP FOR YOURSELF . You still hold onto the belief that if you simply roll over the company will reward you and take care of you yet your own comments prove conclusively that it's not true. Yet this next generation coming in the door behind you are the ones that you not only expect but will be dependent on to produce the cash and the EPS needed to keep your retirement funded in the future.

 

[Oldfart]

American Motors went by the wayside like Hudson, Studebaker and on and on. You make the products the people want at a price they can afford OR you go away. AMC made some serious muscle cars in the 60's and then the Gremlin and Pacer sent them to the graveyard. About the only asset AMC had was the Jeep model. They fell behind the times and went away. Sears fell behind the times and they are close to going away. You can't rest on your laurels, you have to keep reinventing you and your products and services. You claim to be a mover and shaker in today's business and yet you do not understand simple business principles. You can spit out initials and different business laws that you claim keep the worker down but in reality, if you knew half of what you think you knew, you would not be here crying all the time. You would be on Wall Street. Meanwhile I am in Miami enjoying the weather and the races. You are in your cheap recliner crying all the time about how the man has kept you down. I am gonna enjoy the Exfinity race. You enjoy your day drowning in your tears and sorrow.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

American Motors went by the wayside like Hudson, Studebaker and on and on. You make the products the people want at a price they can afford OR you go away. AMC made some serious muscle cars in the 60's and then the Gremlin and Pacer sent them to the graveyard. About the only asset AMC had was the Jeep model. They fell behind the times and went away. Sears fell behind the times and they are close to going away. You can't rest on your laurels, you have to keep reinventing you and your products and services. You claim to be a mover and shaker in today's business and yet you do not understand simple business principles. You can spit out initials and different business laws that you claim keep the worker down but in reality, if you knew half of what you think you knew, you would not be here crying all the time. You would be on Wall Street. Meanwhile I am in Miami enjoying the weather and the races. You are in your cheap recliner crying all the time about how the man has kept you down. I am gonna enjoy the Exfinity race. You enjoy your day drowning in your tears and sorrow.

Chrysler bought AMC.

 

[dezguy]

I don't know about anyone else but once a year we get a new compensation package. It says compensation package on it and inside is our revised benefits (cheaper with less and less benefits to us, year after year) and our revised "pension".

Both are considered compensation by the company.

 

[Oldfart]

Chrysler bought AMC.

For the Jeep name mainly

 

[bacha29]

I don't know about anyone else but once a year we get a new compensation package. It says compensation package on it and inside is our revised benefits (cheaper with less and less benefits to us, year after year) and our revised "pension".

Both are considered compensation by the company.

Right, and
"old fart' doesn't want to confront the fact that a new far less compensated generation is going to be called upon to produce value that is almost certain to be greater that what he was called onto do and to do it for far less in the way of compensation while be required to keep his retirement benefit plan solvent. And most importantly he doesn't care. That being the case.....why should you ?

 

[Meat]

My estimation with inflation and the tax on the lump sum. 35 hours a week for 30 years. Sometimes a tad more when it gets busy. I can buy a new 2043 Volkswagen Golf GTI. Cash. Then I can live in it also.

Unfortunately, this is becoming commonplace for many American households. There will soon be a retirement crisis to match the debt, democracy, and climate crisis. When you start to look at the average retirement savings per household it doesn't bode well. There are those (i.e. Old Farty B Demented/Book 'em Dano - assuming they are different posters) that think you can have a growing number of have-nots without it having a catastrophic effect on the haves (e.g. myself), but that is pure fantasy.

 

[Oldfart]

Right, and
"old fart' doesn't want to confront the fact that a new far less compensated generation is going to be called upon to produce value that is almost certain to be greater that what he was called onto do and to do it for far less in the way of compensation while be required to keep his retirement benefit plan solvent. And most importantly he doesn't care. That being the case.....why should you ?

My retirement will be dependent on my 401k, with my pension being a very small portion of my income. Everyone has the same opportunities as I have to build their 401k. Put in your 6% and get the 3.5% match and watch your money grow. Getting just 5% return you should be able to build a nest egg of close to 450k if you started at an early age. The fact that newer employees do not have 2 pensions should not prevent them from saving money in the 401k. I have made sacrifices my entire working career to live comfortably when I retire. If people are not putting money in their 401k and preparing for the future, having 1 or 2 pensions is not gonna be their saving grace. That pack of smokes, that Starbucks, that new car you had to have all take away from the money you should be saving. You should be able to retire on your 401k and not even depend on your pension.

 

[Oldfart]

I don't know about anyone else but once a year we get a new compensation package. It says compensation package on it and inside is our revised benefits (cheaper with less and less benefits to us, year after year) and our revised "pension".

Both are considered compensation by the company.

Does your pension show on your paycheck or your yearly tax forms? Do you put your pension anywhere on your tax return? Line 1 on MY W-2 says "wages, tips and other compensation" It does not mention anything about pension. Your pension might show up on your compensation package from the company but to the IRS, it is not considered compensation.

 

[bbsam]

Unfortunately, this is becoming commonplace for many American households. There will soon be a retirement crisis to match the debt, democracy, and climate crisis. When you start to look at the average retirement savings per household it doesn't bode well. There are those (i.e. Old Farty B Demented/Book 'em Dano - assuming they are different posters) that think you can have a growing number of have-nots without it having a catastrophic effect on the haves (e.g. myself), but that is pure fantasy.

True. It's like they think the federal government or their employers or banks won't simply take it from them and all three have shown the ability and willingness to do so at some point or another .

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

Does your pension show on your paycheck or your yearly tax forms? Do you put your pension anywhere on your tax return? Line 1 on MY W-2 says "wages, tips and other compensation" It does not mention anything about pension. Your pension might show up on your compensation package from the company but to the IRS, it is not considered compensation.

Pension is deferred compensation.

Pension payments are compensation and are taxable.