It remains a mystery to me why raiding pension funds isn't viewed as stealing. Employers contribute to pension funds as part of employee compensation. Some money that could have been paid as salary was instead paid into a special fund to pay for the individual's retirement. It is the individual's money just as much as a wage would be.1 No one would ever ask a bankruptcy court to authorize debtors to raid the private bank accounts of employees and former employees, on the theory that those accounts are filled with money that originated from the Employer. And no bankruptcy court would ever okay such a thing.
1- Okay, I realize this gets a little messy when you're talking about a defined benefit plan as opposed to a defined contribution plan because each individual dollar paid to an employee is not necessarily vested with that employee. But I think the same idea would still apply. Pension credits in a defined benefit plan are earned and paid by employers as compensation just like wages or salaries are. So why isn't taking that away years after the pension is earned considered to be stealing?
1- Okay, I realize this gets a little messy when you're talking about a defined benefit plan as opposed to a defined contribution plan because each individual dollar paid to an employee is not necessarily vested with that employee. But I think the same idea would still apply. Pension credits in a defined benefit plan are earned and paid by employers as compensation just like wages or salaries are. So why isn't taking that away years after the pension is earned considered to be stealing?
