Word: pensioners
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They are public employees in state and local governments, ranging from teachers to cops. Most collect guaranteed pensions provided through state and local taxes and their own contributions and investment returns. Overall, 90% of public employees enjoy a defined-benefit pension, compared with only 20% (and falling) of the private work force...
Even though the commitment is there, the money isn't. A study by analysts at Barclays Global Investors in San Francisco estimates that public-employee pension funds in the U.S. are short $700 billion. That's more than all state and local governments collected last year in property, sales and corporate income taxes combined. As a result, many employees in the private sector will get hit with a double whammy: while their pensions erode, increasingly they will be hit with cuts in government services and forced to pay higher taxes to cover the pensions of public employees, the kind they...
...source close to Refco's largest shareholder, buyout kingpin Thomas Lee, says Lee figures his remaining Refco stake is worthless. Lee recouped $175 million in the Refco IPO. But he had invested $507 million for 57% of Refco in 2004, using funds from dozens of public and private pension systems, including California Public Employees' Retirement System, Pennsylvania State Employees' Retirement System, General Motors and Verizon. As a Refco insider (several Lee executives are on the Refco board), Lee and the underwriters who took the company public may be on the hook for shareholder losses. "We have a history of taking...
...City in central Japan three years ago to build their own farm, where they grow figs. "This was my dream," says 58-year-old Utsumi, happily sweltering inside one of his two greenhouses. "I wanted to establish a way to live when I retired, not just survive off a pension." As retirements go, it's not that retiring?Utsumi often puts in full days that start at 5 a.m.?and the farm only brings in half their pre-retirement income. "As long as I can make a living, it's fine," he says. "It's still better than putting...
...Nearly one out of five Japanese?close to 25 million people?are over 65, a statistic that inspires endless fretting and political debate over social stagnation, overburdened pension plans and inadequate health care. But being one of the world's grayest nations, with a median age of 42.6 years and rising, doesn't mean Japan is turning into a vast nursing home. Led by spirited adventurers like Miura, aging Japanese are refusing the rocking chair and choosing to remain contributing members of society long after they've qualified for senior discounts. Although the mandatory retirement age at most companies...