Friday News Dump: PBGC Announces Bailout Of Four More Failing Union Pensions
By Election Day, the PBGC will have given $69.5 billion in taxpayer bailouts to failing union pension plans.
By Peter List, Editor | November 1, 2024
In Washington, DC, there is a well-known practice called a “Friday News Dump” that refers to the release of news or documents late on a Friday afternoon to avoid media scrutiny.
On Friday, at 4:45 pm (and mere days before the general elections around the country), the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC)—which is the entity responsible for doling out taxpayer money to failing union pension funds—sent out a “Friday News Dump,” announcing the taxpayer bailout of four separate union pension plans.
According to the details within the PBGC press release:
Approximately $684.4 million in taxpayer funds will be given to the United Food and Commercial Workers Union and Participating Food Industry Employers Tri-State Pension Plan (UFCW Tri-State Plan), based in Plymouth Meeting, Pennsylvania, and covering 29,233 participants in the service industry, will receive from taxpayers.
In addition, the PBGC announced that approximately $17.1 million in taxpayer funds will be given to the Local 111 Pension Plan (Teamsters Local 111 Plan, which is based in Brooklyn, New York, and covers 1,600 participants in the transportation industry.
The PBGC also announced that approximately $34.6 million of taxpayer funds would be given to the Pension Plan of the Marine Carpenters Pension Fund (Marine Carpenters Fund), which is based in Pleasanton, California and covers 1,198 participants in the construction industry, will receive
And, finally, the PBGC announced on Friday that approximately $75.5 million to the I.B.E.W. Pacific Coast Pension Fund (I.B.E.W. Pacific Coast Fund), which is based in Tacoma, Washington, and covers 3,318 participants in the construction industry.
As of November 1, 2024, the PBGC has approved of about $69.5 billion in special financial assistance to plans that cover about 1,215,000 workers, retirees, and beneficiaries, stated the PBGC.
“Special financial assistance for financially troubled multiemployer plans is financed by general taxpayer monies,” the PBGC notes.
