It may be a terrible time to terminate a frozen defined-benefit pension plan due to the recent recession and low interest rates, but it’s never a bad time for companies with frozen plans to start mapping out a termination strategy, and plenty are doing just that.
Between one-fourth and one-third of all defined-benefit pension plans have been frozen, according to Jonathan Waite, director of investment management advice and chief actuary at investment firm SEI, meaning they are closed to new entrants and are no longer accruing benefits for existing participants. And some estimates put the percentage even higher. Waite suggests as ...