A 401(k) is essentially just a retirement savings account. Money goes in regularly, the account has a specific balance, and any future obligations are managed i

A 401(k) is essentially just a retirement savings account. Money goes in regularly, the account has a specific balance, and any future obligations are managed in a well-defined way by a bank or brokerage. There is no opportunity to conflate the performance of the business with the ratio of savers to pensioners or with the performance of the investment itself. The other kind of pension, which we generally hear about in large companies or governments, is indistinguishable (to me) from accounting fraud. The whole point is to make the business (or government) look better today, and make big promises today, and hide the costs and obligations far into the future with optimistic projections. I am not a lawyer or expert on this matter.