I'm not, by any means, anti-union but demanding a pension in 2013 seems, well, ludicrous. Especially when there are other places willing to accept far less in order to get the work. Principal is great and all, but I wonder what will happen when Boeing decides to build the plane in South Carolina or Long Beach. - Kevin (aka ThreadKilla)

I'll have to disagree. The pension fund for the workers is actually fully funded, and is doing just fine. They have the money. What they don't have the money for are the /executive/ pensions - the handful of super-rich guys who sit at the top are worried that they won't get their multi-million dollar payouts when they leave. I think it is reasonable to expect that the money from your fully funded pension will still be there. - Jennifer Dittrich

^^^ - ωαřмaiden ❤Bassetmom❤

My understanding is that the pension isn't going away under the Boeing proposal, but that they'll stop making contributions to it after 2016. - Kevin (aka ThreadKilla)

Oh, the pension isn't going away - it is being merged with the executive one. So, the $495 million dollar payout to the current executive will be able to be made. And then maybe the workers, but since the company's going to stop putting in more money.. well. I guess we can only hope, for them, that it /stays/ solvent. - Jennifer Dittrich

Perhaps I'm obtuse, but isn't that a risk regardless? If, say, Boeing starts getting creamed by Airbus, the pension just becomes an unfunded liability. Thats what happened in the car industry anyway... - Kevin (aka ThreadKilla)

Stopping the contributions to the pension fund is a dangerous game. New Jersey stopped contributing to its pension fund for public employees in the 1990s, and now the fund is in serious financial trouble. - John (bird whisperer)

Agreed. In any event, while I understand the concern, I think the reality is that defined benefit (vs. defined contribution) retirement programs are a thing of the past. It sucks, but it's reality. And when you have a real risk of losing a very large piece of business then the downside is that you get to keep your principals and lose jobs. I'm just wondering if the Machinists union is writing its own epitaph. - Kevin (aka ThreadKilla)