A review of form 5500 filings going back to 2007 for the Central States Pension Plan tell some stories and provide some perspective:
The data is in this spreadsheet starting with the participant count:
Asset history:
Funding levels from the Schedule MB (though the 2008 B was missing from the FOIA response):
And a comparison of contributions reported on the MB and the Schedule H:
Differences could have something to do with withdrawal liabilities (though I am open to other explanations) and in the case of 2007 the massive difference is likely related to UPS buying itself out of this plan, a history of which will be the subject of the next blog (before we get to the other FOIA stuff I have gotten).
Links to 5500 filings for the years:
Burypensions Blog 
Posted by Triune on February 19, 2018 at 8:52 am
Good morning Mr. Bury:
This is fascinating. Is there any info on the massive losses in 2008? I would guess heavy in the stock market and possibly a sub-prime portfolio?
Could you explain the EE and ER columns? Employee and Employer Contributions?
I know this pension has problems on many levels, I would focus on the unstable investment earning? Is there analysis available?
Tim Alexander
Triune
805-402-4943
tim@triunegfs.com
Posted by burypensions on February 19, 2018 at 4:45 pm
ER are employer contributions while EE are participant contributions – possibly some arrangement where participants buy service or even entry into the plan.
There is supposed to be an analysis within the Annual Funding Notice that PBGC-covered plans are supposed to provide to participants where they break down by percentages where the money is invested in and the 5500 Schedule H itself has some breakdown by type of investment.
Posted by Stephen Douglas on February 20, 2018 at 12:56 pm
One reason for employee contributions…
“You might want to submit Self-Contributions to
avoid a One-Year Break or a Break in Service, to earn
additional Contributory Credit, or to earn Vesting
Service. ”
“You submit enough Self-Contributions so that
you have at least 20 weeks, 75 days, or 600
hours of Contributions in the calendar year for
which the Self-Contributions are submitted, and”
“You submit Self-Contributions at the same
rates your Employer was required to pay under
the collective bargaining agreement; and”
“You follow the Plan’s procedures for submitting
Self-Contributions, including the payment of
interest from the earliest date of the period of
the Self-Contributions to the date you submit
them. The interest rate you pay is the same
rate charged to Employers that do not pay their
Contributions on a timely basis.”
(Cut/paste from a UPS pension website, but I lost the link.)
Posted by FO Central States: UPS Withdrawal – 2007 | Burypensions Blog on February 19, 2018 at 9:03 pm
[…] « FO Central States (2): 5500 History […]
Posted by Stephen Douglas on February 20, 2018 at 12:15 pm
“If the Central States Pension Plan and other pension plans are allowed to fail, taxpayers could be at risk of having to pay billions to cover the losses.”
This is the third time I have seen this statement. what’s up with that?
http://www.kvrr.com/2018/02/19/bipartisan-committee-formed-find-solution-pension-crisis/
Posted by Tough Love on February 20, 2018 at 2:56 pm
The PBCG payout limit on Multiemployer Plans is VERY low (maximum guarantee is $12,870 per year for someone with 30 years of service) so it’s had to see how that could become a big number.
Of course indirectly, some whose pensions are reduced might wind up receiving Social Service benefits (that otherwise wouldn’t have been the case). In this latter situation, it SHOULD be handled that way …….. just as it now is for Private Sector workers/retirees with insufficient income to meet basic needs.
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