The Spark

the Voice of
The Communist League of Revolutionary Workers–Internationalist

“The emancipation of the working class will only be achieved by the working class itself.”
— Karl Marx

Secrets and Lies about GM’s “Legacy Costs”

Jun 26, 2006

The whole world has been led to believe that high pension costs for UAW retirees at GM have bled the company dry. The big lie!

Well, none other than the Wall Street Journal revealed that executive benefits are what is “playing a large and hidden role in the health of America’s pensions.” The well-kept secret.

Come to find out, GM’s pension plan for UAW workers is OVER-funded, containing about nine billion dollars more than is needed in years to come. This very pension plan’s assets PRODUCED 10 billion dollars in investment income for GM in 2005 alone.

But there is one pension plan which is underfunded–the one for GM executives, to the tune of 1.4 billion dollars.

This is the pension squeeze companies like GM aren’t talking about, as they continue to repeat the lie about “legacy costs” of union retirees.