The World of Multiemployer Benefit Funds Podcast

On March 11, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law. Most of it was stimulus spending designed to rescue the economy from the coronavirus pandemic, but did you also know that it provides $86 billion for 10.7 million workers in 185 pension funds? Michael Scott, the director of the National Coordinating Committee for Multiemployer Plans, explains what this rescue means for these troubled pension plans and the retirees they serve.

Some highlights from The American Rescue Plan with NCCMP Director include:

01:22 – The Role of the NCCMP
04:14 – The Timeline of Pension Reform
10:27 – Low-Interest Loans or Partitions?
15:11 – The Purpose of the American Rescue Plan
19:34 – The Cost of Doing Nothing

If you'd like to read the PDF file of The American Rescue Plan, please visit:  www.congress.gov
Or check out the NCCMP website:  https://nccmp.org

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Coronavirus has disrupted mental health services in countries from all over the globe. Fear, isolation, loss of income and life have triggered mental health conditions and exacerbated existing ones in workers and families across the country. Janis DiMonaco, Ph.D., the founder of HMC HealthWorks, and Dr. Stephanie Straeter, the clinical director of Behavioral Health and Wellness at HMC HealthWorks, join Traci to talk about the mental stresses labor faces during a global pandemic and the need for mental healthcare, behavioral coaching, and patient advocacy.

Some highlights from Mental Health “Help” Care in the Age of Covid include:

02:03 – Marrying Our Passion with What We Do
05:49 – The HMC HealthWorks Approach to Healthcare
08:21 – Mental Stresses Labor Faces during a Global Pandemic
14:38 – That Personal Touch and Teletherapy
18:57 – Coaching: Not Everyone Needs Therapy
24:39 – How Do We Find These Resources?

Visit the HMC HealthWorks website:  https://www.hmchealthworks.com

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The labor and trust market presents any company with a unique set of needs and challenges for servicing their industry. Tera Clizbe, the vice president of Labor and Trust at Blue Shield of California, joins Traci on the podcast to discuss the changing needs of labor, the challenges they face with their healthcare, and how the community came together during a global pandemic.

Some highlights from The Labor and Trust Community with Tera Clizbe include:

03:22 – Aligned values with the Labor community
06:22 – A crazy year dealing with Covid
10:22 – Are trust funds thinking differently about healthcare?
17:58 – Access to affordable healthcare
21:57 – Leading the way in diversity, equity, and inclusion

If you're a union member and want to learn more about the Labor & Trust team at Blue Shield of California, visit their website:  www.blueshieldca.com

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A handful of past guests help Traci summarize the pension crisis, recount the events that led us here and highlight the solutions making the rounds in Congress. Traci’s guests are Jason Russell, senior vice president and actuary from Segal Consulting; Russell Kamp, blogger, pension reform advocate, and managing director at Ryan ALM; Jack Marco, retired chairman of Marco Consulting; and John Elliot, a partner at New England Pension Consultants.

Some highlights from The ABCs of the Pension Crisis:

00:37 – 130 Plans in Crisis!
02:59 – How Did We Get Here?
07:38 – Partitions and the PBGC
09:59 – The “Goofiness” of MPRA
14:12 – Two Different Pension Reform Proposals
27:03 – Some Final Thoughts on Pension Reform…

Show highlights are compiled from past podcasts only available at www.multiemployerfunds.com

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Contact:
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www.sisupartnersllc.com

The Central States Pension Fund (CSPF) serves 400,000 workers and retirees and is expected to become insolvent by 2025. Before the coronavirus pandemic, 130 plans were projected to run out of money over the next two decades, but now that number threatens to climb even higher. How did we get here? Who’s to blame? Will the new Democratic majority in both Houses of Congress act on much-needed pension reform? Taft-Hartley Consultant of the Year and partner at New England Pension Consultants, John Elliot, joins Traci on the podcast to help answer some of these pressing questions.

Some highlights from The Pension Crisis: How We Got Here include:

01:27 – From Weiss, Peck & Greer to NEPC
04:37 – The “Perfect Storm” of the 1990s and 2000s
07:52 – The Dreaded MPRA Cuts
09:43 – Why Pension Reform is Both a Democratic and a Republican Issue
11:17 – Variable Defined Benefit Plans
13:22 – The Mathematics of Hybrid Plans
18:43 – Dismantling the Fears of Hybrid Plans
20:47 – Union Membership and Millennials
29:38 – Macro Economy and the Price of Debt

If you'd like to learn more about New England Pension Consultants, visit their website:  www.nepc.com

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Contact:
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www.sisupartnersllc.com

Before the pandemic, 130 defined benefit plans were in danger of insolvency, but now that number has jumped to 200. Pension reform is needed more than ever, and the new Congress must act! Traci talks to retired Marco Consulting Chairman, Jack Marco, about pension reform, the new Congress, and some possible paths forward for these troubled plans.

Some highlights from Pension Reform and the New Congress include:

01:33 - A Way Forward for Pension Reform?
04:40 - Defend and Protect Worker Benefits – Not the PBGC!
07:41 – Government Bonds and the Butch-Lewis Act
10:42 – What About These Hybrid Plans?
13:33 – Testifying Before the House in 2010
15:39 – Democracy is a Verb!

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Contact:
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www.sisupartnersllc.com

Traci chats with retired CEO of Marco Consulting, Jack Marco, about his humble Chicago roots; his work with Senator Abner Mikva, and the founding of the Mikva Challenge. The Mikva Challenge launched its pilot program in the 1998-99 school year. Now, the Mikva Challenge transforms over 50,000 young people across three states with a curriculum of civics coupled with leadership skills and political participation.

Some highlights from "Democracy is a Verb" include:

01:30 – The Humble Beginning
03:50 – Meeting Abner Mikva
06:39 – The Mikva Challenge Begins…
09:53 – Mikva Challenge and the 2020 Election
13:33 – “Project Soapbox”
15:23 – Being Aggressive About Diversity
22:01 – Mikva Challenge Success Stories
24:56 – “Chicago Wears Condoms”

If you'd like to learn more about the Mikva Challenge, please visit their website:  www.mikvachallenge.org

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Contact:
[email protected]
www.sisupartnersllc.com

Established in 1987, Roberts and Ryan became the first service-disabled, veteran-owned broker-dealer in the country. Roberts and Ryan president, Brian Rathjen, joins Traci Dority-Shanklin on the podcast to chat about his passions from supplier-diversity to helping the veteran community and Year Up, an inner-city youth mentoring program.

Some episode highlights included:

• The First Service-Disabled, Veteran-Owned Broker-Dealer in the Country
• Boulder Crest Retreat
• A Crucible of Diversity
• Making Strides in Wealth Management
• Year Up: The Inner-City Youth and Internship Program
• Creating Pipelines of Opportunity
• PSDs: Poor, Smart, and Determined
• OMWI: The Office of Minority and Women Inclusion and the RFP

If you'd like to learn more about YearUp or Roberts and Ryan, check out their websites:  www.yearup.org
Roberts and Ryan

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Former NFL running back and current president of the AFL-CIO Investment Trust Corporation, Randy Kinder joins host, Traci Dority-Shanklin, for the second part of their conversation. In this episode,  they discuss supplier-diversity and how the Investment Trust Corporation builds diverse partnerships as the country grapples with police brutality and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Some episode highlights include:

• The ITC Approach to Building Diverse Partnerships
• Company Push-Back: Meritocracy
• Breaking Barriers: A Sports Metaphor
• Conversations Matter!
• Representation Matters: The Pathway Forward
• People Will Listen
• A Few Final Thoughts

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Former NFL running back and current president of the AFL-CIO Investment Trust Corporation, Randy Kinder joins Traci to discuss the flurry of inclusion statements issued by financial companies and why they’re important in the wake of the Black Lives Matter movement.

• The Randy Kinder Story: The Road to ITC
• Remembering Who We Work For
• The Race Conversation Intensifies
• How Can Companies Achieve More Diversity
• Are Corporate Inclusion Statements Enough?
• Accountability: When Companies Fail

Support the show

Contact:
[email protected]
www.sisupartnersllc.com