>>I understand the payoff numbers have increased 3-4% per year since this was written while SS has gone up a total of 7.1% in the last 6 years. Employees pay in about the same or less % than they would under SS.
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>That's great to hear.
>As you can see below, it's not universal.
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>http://www.chicagobusiness.com/article/20130110/NEWS07/130109847/pension-fund-rankings-by-state-were-no-50
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>Private pension plans are worse off.
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>Check this out
>"In fiscal year 2015, PBGC paid $5.6 billion in benefits to participants of failed single-employer pension plans. That year, 69 single-employer pension plans failed. PBGC paid $103 million in financial assistance to 57 multiemployer pension plans. The agency's deficit increased to $76 billion. It has a total of $164 billion in obligations and $88 billion in assets.[2]"
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>Sure, there are stories of plans making huge returns with equities, but let me remind you that the NASDAQ just reached the level it was at in 1999 this year.
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>Here in New Jersey, state workers are seriously worried about the state's funding ability.

These "opt out of SS" plans are not run in the sense that most employer and government pension plans are run. The alternate plans are more like a mandatory 401K. When an employee gets paid about 7.1 % of their wages are deducted automatically, the employer puts in their 12-14% match and the total amount is deposited in the Employee's account. The employer can no more take money out of or borrow from the employee's account than a company can take money out of or borrow money from an employee's 401K. The 12-14% seems high but remember the employer doesn't have to pay the 7.65 to SS so the employer contribution is really only a 5-7% additional cost. The match is required by law the same as employers are required to pay the match to SS.
I agree that a lot of governmental and private plans are in trouble. I think the real problem with both is who actually owns the money in the retirement plan and whether it is paid into with a promise or with actual real time transfer of cash.