Printer-friendly versionSend to friend

By Doug Cunningham

IBM is the latest big corporation abolishing pensions. Despite a profit in 2004 of $9 billion and a pension fund that holds $48 billion, IBM recently announced its pensions will be frozen in 2008. After that IBM will offer only 401 (k) plans, meaning workers will get less money for their retirement while the corporation takes the money instead.
Lee Conrad is national coordinator for the Alliance@IBM, a Communications Workers of America union organizing effort at the company.

[Lee Conrad 1] : "This latest attack on the pension is mainly affecting long time IBM employees - probably about 20,000 of them. But even IBM executives are saying these people will be impacted negatively on this and will be losing money."

Pensions are under attack nationwide and now IBM has joined that attack. The way to fight that, Conrad says is union organizing.

[Conrad 2]: "The lesson here is that people need to mobilize and fight back. Employees of IBM and other non-union companies should get out there and start organizing. IBM is able to do this simply because they can. There is no union contract that says they have to negotiate these kinds of changes. It’s take it or leave it in non-union companies."