Many pensions in the US promised guaranteed payments in retirement that they cannot now meet in low interest rate environments. This is one of the core issues w

Many pensions in the US promised guaranteed payments in retirement that they cannot now meet in low interest rate environments. This is one of the core issues with pensions in the US. Also, pensions are not controlled by the individual. The money is pooled and managed by the pension fund. This is of course subject to corruption and bloated fees as we have seen. The 401k program is not perfect, and in fact needs to be totally reformed, but they at least offer more choice and competition and do not promise guaranteed returns.