Disturbing trend

Posted by & filed under Accounting Information Systems, Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Behavioral and Social Issues Related to Accounting, Cost Accounting, Ethical Dilemma, Financial Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized.

According to Benefits Pro.com, life insurers will have to prepare for the possibility that the life span of life insurance policyholders, annuity holders and pension plan participants could fall. Questions: According to the article, the provisional life expectancy at birth in the first half of 2020 was at its lowest level since what year? Is… Read more »

A Deep Freeze for GE Pensions

Posted by & filed under Accounting Information Systems, Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized, Video Updates.

According to the WSJ, General Electric Co. said it was freezing its pension plan for about 20,000 U.S. workers and offering pension buyouts to 100,000 former employees, as the conglomerate joins the ranks of U.S. companies phasing out a guaranteed retirement. Questions: Who is the CEO? The video said the CEO has been aggressive. What has he… Read more »

An Age of Trust and Undying Loyalty

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According to the New York Times, Sears may be struggling to survive after filing for bankruptcy in October, since its rundown and empty stores symbolize a has-been company that failed to adapt. But across the country, legions of former Sears workers like Mr. Atwood, a retired truck driver, gather regularly to reminisce about their long… Read more »

Something to look forward to? Bankruptcy in Retirement!

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According to a recent study, the rate of people 65 and older filing for bankruptcy is three times what it was in 1991. Questions: 1. What are some of the main reasons that this is happening? 2. What is happening to the next generation nearing retirement age and why is this happening? 3. In 2016,… Read more »

Not a good financial plan!

Posted by & filed under Accounting Information Systems, Accounting Principles, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Ethical Dilemma, Financial Accounting, Income Taxes, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized.

Even though Wall Street and the financial press have been harping for decades on the retirement savings crisis, this article provides some additional perspectives. Questions: 1. According to the Manpower Group, what percentage of millennials plan to work until they die (as their solution to retirement)? 2. Why do so many millennials have such a… Read more »

Dutch Treat?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Information Systems, Accounting Principles, Auditing, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

According to the New York Times, “Dutch pensions are scrupulously funded, unlike many United States plans, and are required to tally their liabilities with brutal honesty, using a method that is common in the financial-services industry but rejected by American public pension funds.” This article discusses the Dutch belief that each generation should pay its… Read more »

Separation of Power

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Auditing, Financial Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Managerial Accounting.

Netflix shareholders will vote on at the company’s annual meeting on Monday is a proposal by two public pension funds to separate the roles of chairman and chief executive. Both are held by Reed Hastings, Netflix’s co-founder. Questions: 1. Who are the backers of this corporate governance issue and why do you think they are… Read more »

Pension Predators – A New York Investigation

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Gov. Andrew Cuomo is ordering New York’s top banking regulator to investigate “pension advance” firms. The payments by these firms are advertised as advances. However, they are really cleverly disguised high interest rate loans that target older citizens’ assets. Questions: 1. What are the benefits for the firms on insisting that they are advances rather… Read more »

Pension Advances to be Scrutinized by Congress and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau

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This New York Times article discusses the allure of borrowing against pensions, which underscores an abrupt reversal in the financial fortunes of many retirees in recent years. The offers, known as pension advances, are having devastating financial consequences for a growing number of older Americans, both threatening their retirement savings and exacerbating mounting debt within… Read more »

Rhode Island Nearly Broke?

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The current general treasurer of Rhode Island, Gina Raimondo, warns that the state will soon be broke due to its debt problems. After decades of drift, denial and inaction, Rhode Island’s $14.8 billion pension system is in crisis. Ten cents of every state tax dollar now goes to retired public workers and that figure will… Read more »