SEIU Pensions: The Real Truth Behind Defined Benefit Plans
The Honorable Elaine Chao
U.S. Department of Labor
Frances Perkins Building
200 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20210
U.S. Department of Labor
Frances Perkins Building
200 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20210
Dear Secretary Chao,
The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is perhaps the largest union in the United States, and has increasingly sought to take the lead in driving the economic policies of our country. As just one example, on July 17th, 2008, the SEIU is sponsoring a “Take Back the Economy,” with planned events in 100 cities.
As part of its overall economic agenda, the SEIU has advocated for defined benefit pension plans, and has used promises of secure pension benefits to encourage workers to join the union. However, as this letter and the evidence will show, the financial health of many SEIU pension plans covering rank and file workers is deteriorating. The pension plans covering SEIU staff and executives, by contrast, are well funded.
Therefore, on behalf of the 20-plus undersigned groups and individuals, representing millions of hard-working, rank-and-file American employees, taxpayers, and business owners, we urge you to investigate SEIU’s pension finances so that workers can count on the secure retirement they have been promised.
The most recent Form 5500 filings of 13 major SEIU locals were examined for financial health. These thirteen plans represent the retirement savings of 190,126 American workers. The combined actuarial assets of $2.826 Billion will only cover 56% of the more than $5 Billion in current liabilities.
Further, the majority of these plans individually were seriously underfunded. The funded current liability percentage of six plans was between 65 and 85 percent, while the other seven plans were funded below 65 percent. What does this mean for the average SEIU worker who was led to believe the promises of a secure pension?
Equally disturbing is a comparison of the plans covering rank and file workers with the plans covering the SEIU’s own staff and well paid executives.
In 2006, according to SEIU’s Form 5500, the SEIU National Industry Pension Plan, which covers 100,787 average rank-and-file union members, was only 74.9 percent funded, down from more than 100 percent a decade ago, with just $11,069 in assets per participant.
Conversely, according to the most recent Form 5500, the SEIU Affiliates, Officers & Employees Pension Plan that has only 6,595 participants consisting of employees and officers – not workers, was over funded at 103.3 percent resulting in almost $70,000 in assets per participant. The difference in assets between the SEIU officer’s pension plans and the SEIU workers is approximately $58,818.
As the SEIU prepares to “Take Back the Economy” its neglect of its own members’ pensions speaks volumes. Therefore, with the interest of the average working and investing American in mind, this coalition urges the investigation of this apparent mismanagement of pension funds of working union members at the hands of the SEIU.
As the SEIU prepares to “Take Back the Economy” its neglect of its own members’ pensions speaks volumes. Therefore, with the interest of the average working and investing American in mind, this coalition urges the investigation of this apparent mismanagement of pension funds of working union members at the hands of the SEIU.
Sincerely,
Brian M. Johnson, MPA
Executive Director
Alliance for Worker Freedom
Grover G. Norquist
President
Americans for Tax Reform
Ryan Ellis
President
Americans for Tax Reform
Ryan Ellis
Executive Director
American Shareholders Association
Chuck Muth
President
President
Citizen Outreach Project
David J Hansen
David J Hansen
President
Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions
Buckeye Institute for Public Policy Solutions
John Caldera
President
President
Independence Institute
Timothy H. Lee, Esq.
Timothy H. Lee, Esq.
Director of Legal and Public Affairs
Center for Individual Freedom
Charles W. Baird
Emeritus Professor of Economics
California State University, East Bay
Sonya Jones, J.D.
Director, Labor Policy Center
Evergreen Freedom Foundation
Matthew J. Brouillette
President
Commonwealth Foundation
Thomas Schatz
President
Citizens Against Government Waste
David Denholm
President
Public Service Research Foundation
Ken Boehm
Chairman
National Legal and Policy Center
Carl Forti
Executive Vice President of Issue Advocacy
Freedoms Watch
William Greene
President
RightMarch.com
Jim Martin
President
60 Plus Association
Emeritus Professor of Economics
California State University, East Bay
Sonya Jones, J.D.
Director, Labor Policy Center
Evergreen Freedom Foundation
Matthew J. Brouillette
President
Commonwealth Foundation
Thomas Schatz
President
Citizens Against Government Waste
David Denholm
President
Public Service Research Foundation
Ken Boehm
Chairman
National Legal and Policy Center
Carl Forti
Executive Vice President of Issue Advocacy
Freedoms Watch
William Greene
President
RightMarch.com
Jim Martin
President
60 Plus Association
David A. Keene
Chairman
American Conservative Union
Kevin Kane
President
Pelican Institute
Ben Cunningham
Pelican Institute
Ben Cunningham
Chair
Center-Right Coalition - Tennessee
Center-Right Coalition - Tennessee
Don Racheter
Chair
Chair
Center Right Coalition - Iowa
Lawrence J. McQuillan, Ph.D.
Lawrence J. McQuillan, Ph.D.
Director, Business and Economic Studies
Pacific Research Institute for Public Policy
Carl Horowitz
Director
Organized Labor Accountability Project
Doug Bandow
Director
Organized Labor Accountability Project
Doug Bandow
Cobden Fellow in International Economics
Institute for Policy Innovation
Jamie Story
President
Grassroots Institute of Hawaii
Jim Grey
President
Grassroots Institute of Hawaii
Jim Grey
President
Jim Gray Consultants, LLC
Barbara Anderson
Executive Director
Citizens for Limited Taxation
Executive Director
Citizens for Limited Taxation
