The union leadership and the management have to be faulted here- they created a benefit based on continuing growth that can't be financially supported in a down

The union leadership and the management have to be faulted here- they created a benefit based on continuing growth that can't be financially supported in a downturn. Anything besides a pension program that is funded as it goes and has market driven payouts has a high risk of turning into a Ponzi scheme. The beauty of 401k is that the company gives you the money now, they don't just promise to give it to you in the future. As the pace of change continues to accelerate, it is a less and less likely that the company you work for today is going to exist in the same form at the time you retire. Think of all of the newspaper pensions- who's going to be paying those in 30 years? Even if the companies establish separate pension funds that that can survive beyond the life of the company, the payouts from that fund will be based on the performance of its investments and the lifespans of the people that receive funds from it. In short, I'd much rather have a 401k that can be rolled over into the investment freedom of an IRA (some place I can own short contracts) than be depending on a pension plan run by a company that may or may not exist at the time I retire.