The World of Multiemployer Benefit Funds Podcast

If your union or employer’s defined benefit plan was in critical and declining condition and facing insolvency, would you consider a hybrid retirement solution to fix it? That’s exactly how the UFCW Local 21 turned their red-zone plan back to green. UFCW Local 21 president, Faye Guenther, shares the bold steps taken by her UFCW family when they switched from their legacy plan to a variable annuity pension plan (VAPP).

Some highlights from UFCW Local 21 and the Saga of the Variable Annuity Plan include:

04:17 – A Red-zone Plan in a Death Spiral
08:14 – The First Big Challenge 
10:36 – Kroger and the VAPP
16:44 – The Employer Reactions
19:48 – The Variable Annuity Plan and the Path Forward

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A hybrid retirement plan combines parts of a defined benefit plan with parts of a defined contribution plan. Dan Doonan, the Executive Director of the National Institute on Retirement Security, and Elizabeth Wiley, a consulting actuary at Cheiron, wrote the book on hybrid plans – literally! Dan and Elizabeth penned The Hybrid Handbook, a white paper on hybrid retirement plans in the public sector. Listen as they share their insights on these plans along with some of their favorite case studies. 

Some highlights from Not All Hybrid Plans Are Created Equal include:

01:27 – Hybrid Retirement Plans: The Case Studies
06:30 – The Best Time to Plant a Tree…
10:56 – Unfunded Liabilities and a Cause for Concern
14:35 – Risk Sharing vs Risk Shifting
19:03 – The Efficiency of Pensions vs Defined Contribution
24:30 – Thoughts on Pension Reform

Click on The Hybrid Handbook if you'd like to read or download a PDF of Dan and Elizabeth's white paper.

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Hybrid retirement plans are becoming a viable option to the traditional defined benefit and defined contribution plans, but what are they? And who are they right for? Dan Doonan, the Executive Director of the National Institute on Retirement Security, and Elizabeth Wiley, a Cheiron consulting actuary, co-authored The Hybrid Handbook, where they outline various public hybrid retirement plan structures. Dan and Elizabeth demystify these plans and explain why some struggling multiemployer plans should consider a hybrid option.

Some highlights from Hybrid Retirement Plans 101 include:

03:37 – The Hybrid Handbook
05:55 – The Spectrum: Defined Benefit & Defined Contribution
10:16 – Types of Hybrid Plan Structures
17:27 – Is Risk Sharing a Negative?
22:30 – Communication is Key

Click on www.nirsonline.org if you'd like to download or read a PDF copy of Dan and Elizabeth's "Hybrid Handbook" 

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Uniontrack’s Engage app combines union dues payment software, union membership communication software, and grievance tracking software into a web-based system. Uniontrack created the union-friendly app, and their CEO, Ken Green, explains how the Engage app solves workflow issues for unions and empowers the next generation of union members through technology.

Some highlights from Uniontrack’s Engage: The Union-Friendly App include:

03:35 – Solving Union Workflow Issues
09:17 – Unifying Union Operations
13:54 – Leverage Technology for Organizing
19:06 – Connecting & Communicating with Engage
21:07 – Dispelling Myths About Labor
25:32 – Building a Movement with Technology

https://www.uniontrack.com

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The union brotherhood and sisterhood are committed to more than its own membership. When 9/11 happened, the Teamsters mobilized truckloads of cell phones and radios to rescue workers. Elizabeth Murray-Belcaster, the CEO of EMB Consultants who consults on training to placement programs with the Department of Defense and trade unions, rejoins the podcast. Elizabeth shares how the brotherhood and the sisterhood have impacted diversity, three presidential administrations, and the Department of Defense’s SkillBridge program.

Some highlights from Union Matters: The Brotherhood & the Sisterhood include:

02:01 – Will the Welder
06:38 – Industry Stakeholders and Millennials
11:07 – Obama, Trump, and Biden…
14:26 – The Only Woman in the Room
19:50 – Union Proud: The Teamsters!

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Labor unions provide workers with better wages and safer workplaces, but did you also know that they train transitioning military veterans in career pathways for civilian life? Our next guest develops and implements veteran training to placement programs with the Department of Defense and labor unions. The CEO of EMB Consultants, Elizabeth Murray-Belcaster, shares her experiences with the DOD’s SkillBridge program and why more organized labor should invest in these programs.

Some highlights from Union Matters: Veterans Training Programs include:

01:48 – Getting Endorsements
06:26 – Transition is a Culture!
11:45 – Nothing Happens in a Vacuum
14:57 – Why Aren’t We Doing These Programs Everywhere?
18:44 – Case Studies: the Teamsters and Utility Workers of America
25:45 – The DOD’s SkillBridge Program

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You may know that union workers make more money than non-union workers, but did you know that 92% of union workers have a guaranteed pension compared to only 68% of non-union workers? Liz Shuler, the secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO, joins Traci on the podcast to discuss the future of defined benefit plans, the union brand, and busting her favorite myths about organized labor.

Some highlights from The Value of Union Membership with Liz Shuler include:

01:46 – Understanding the Value of Union Membership
06:29 – The Future of Defined Benefit Plans
09:30 – The Pension Model Evolves
13:38 – Union Myth-Busting
16:55 – The Digital Revolution and Union Innovation
22:06 – Racial Justice and a Blueprint for Change

https://aflcio.org

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Did you know that the labor movement is the largest organization of working women in the nation? On December 11, 1961, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr told the AFL-CIO, “The two most dynamic and cohesive liberal forces in the country are the labor movement and the Negro Freedom movement. Together, we can be architects of democracy.” Liz Shuler, Secretary-Treasurer of the AFL-CIO, joins Traci on the podcast to talk about how the labor movement and the AFL-CIO are supporting women, minorities, and the next generation of workers.

Some highlights from Meet the AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer, Liz Shuler include:

03:01 – Liz’s Journey to the AFL-CIO
07:55 – “Women of Steel”
12:03 – Union Favorability and Goodwill towards Labor Unions
15:40 – Let’s Pass the PRO-Act!
18:02 – Biden’s Interagency Task Force
21:09 – Next Step and the Young Worker

https://aflcio.org

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Companies like Amazon, Uber, Doordash, and Lyft have big advantages against organized labor. Larry Williams Jr, the founder of Unionbase and a former co-founder of the Progressive Workers Union, returns to the podcast. He explains what elements are needed to run a successful union election campaign and the need for gig workers to have a voice at the bargaining table.

Some highlights from Amazon and the Future of the Gig Economy with Larry Williams Jr include:

01:53 – Assessing the Amazon Union Vote
07:17 – Millennials and the Pension Issue
11:45 – Are the Concerns of Millennials Being Addressed?
16:30 – President Biden and the PRO-Act
23:56 – The Unseen Plight of the Gig Worker

https://unionbase.org

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Support for unions is at an all-time high across the country with 65% in favor! Three-quarters of new union memberships belong to Millennials and Gen Z. Larry Williams Jr., the founder of Unionbase, the nation’s first social media platform designed for labor, is Traci’s guest, and he’s here to tell us all about Unionbase and the role it plays for the next generation of labor organizers.

Some highlights from UnionBase and Organizing the Next Generation include:

01:10 – Larry’s Labor Journey
07:35 – Labor and Management are not Always Contentious
10:58 – UnionBase.org
17:04 – Millennials and White-Collar Organizing
22:04 – But... What About College?

Visit UnionBase.org, the first social media platform designed for the labor movement.

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