WARREN Federal PBGC takes over CSC retirees' pensions

The two pension plans are underfunded by about $56 million.
By CYNTHIA VINARSKY
VINDICATOR BUSINESS WRITER
WARREN -- CSC Ltd. retirees' pension checks will be coming from a new source within the next two months, now that a federal agency has assumed control of the bankrupt company's pension plans.
The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. will be sending letters to CSC retirees and former employees in April, advising them that it has taken over the underfunded pension plans.
Retirees have been getting their checks from CSC's pension plan, and the PBGC said there should be no interruption in benefits when the agency takes over the payments.
Decrease for some: Under federal pension law, however, the PBGC will pay a maximum of $3,392.05 per month for those 65 or over, less for younger retirees or those who chose survivor benefits, so some retirees can expect a decrease when the agency takes over. The PBGC did not have information on how many retirees fall into that category.
PBGC officials estimate the CSC Production and Maintenance Pension Plan and the CSC Clerical Pension Plan are underfunded by about $56 million. The federal agency will add its assets to those of the plans to make sure the CSC retirees are paid.
Jeffrey Speicher, a PBGC spokesman, said about 1,000 employees and retirees were covered by the two plans, but only about 62 are already retired and receiving CSC pensions.
The number of retirees is small, he explained, because CSC was relatively new, formed when The Reserve Group of Akron bought the former Copperweld Steel Corp.'s assets out of federal bankruptcy court in 1995.
Speicher could not say how many more of the CSC workers who were covered by the pension plans will eventually receive partial pension benefits. Employees who met the terms of the plan but are not old enough to retire will also get pension benefits from the PBGC when they are eligible to retire.
Failure to sell: CSC, once the fourth largest industrial employer in the Mahoning-Trumbull-Columbiana area, is being liquidated after efforts to sell the steel bar mill to a new operator-owner failed.
The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January 2001 and halted steelmaking operations in April, idling more than 1,300 hourly and salaried workers.
Federal bankruptcy Judge William Bodoh has set April 12 as the final deadline for converting the case to Chapter 7, the final liquidation phase.
The PBGC is a federal corporation created under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 to guarantee payment of basic pension benefits for retirees participating in more than 35,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans.
Contributions: Pension plan participants contribute to the PBGC funds, and it works like an insurance policy by kicking in whenever a pension plan is terminated. The agency receives no funds from general tax revenue.
Speicher said CSC retirees and former employees don't have to take action to qualify for PBGC funds, but those who have questions may call the agency's customer service center toll-free at (800) 400-7242. TTY/TDD users can call the federal relay service toll-free at (800) 877-8339 and ask to be connected to (800) 400-7242.
vinarsky@vindy.com