养老金福利担保公司是养老金计划的联邦支持者，已批准在纽约州的两名工人国际北美养老基金的合并，其中一项是严重的财务问题。

The PBGC’s merger approval, which it宣布1月14日，它是2014年《多雇主养老金改革法》的第一个。这两个计划是当地的1000养老基金，覆盖了400多名参与者，以及本地的235养老金计划，该计划拥有1,100多名参与者。

本地235基金位于PBGC“绿色区”，表示其财务状况。但是，根据PBGC的数据，但是本地1000基金处于“批判性和下降”地位，这是养老金法律下的最低类别，预计将在2026年撤退。

为了协助合并，PBGC每年为三年提供890万美元的合并计划。它于1月15日首次付款。

Matthew Berger, an attorney for Local 235, said via email that with the $26.7 million from the PBGC, the Local 235 fund is projected to be 100% funded on the same date as it would have been if the pension funds hadn't merged.

如果本地1000基金将变得无力偿债，伯杰说，它将无法支付养老金计划参与者所产生的全部利益。他补充说，养老金领取者将获得PBGC保证的福利水平，这可能小于全部应计福利。

保证的福利因退休人员的服务年份而有所不同，但PBGC估计，拥有30年服务的人的最高保证每年为$ 12,870。

根据PBGC的说法，合并不会减少任何计划的参与者和受益人的收益。

PBGC Director Gordon Hartogensis said in a statement, “Through this facilitated merger, we are preventing a failing plan from going broke and preserving benefits in a financially responsible way.”

Matt Pavesi, a vice president with consulting firm Segal—and the actuary for Local 235—said in a statement that the biggest winners from the merger are "the plan participants of Local 1000, who can now retire with the benefits that they worked hard to obtain." Pavesi added, "Thanks to everyone involved in this merger, and the PBGC's assistance, their full benefits were preserved."

Pavesi said in an interview that there will be other PBGC-facilitated mergers but added that they won't work for every plan. "These two funds were in the PBGC's sweet spot and luckily it was approved and it worked," he said.

Berger, who is with the law firm of Barnes, Iaccarino & Shepherd in Hempstead, N.Y., said that several factors led to the Local 1000 Pension Fund's problems, He points to the "downsizing" of one of the largest employer-contributors to the fund and the impact of the 2008 Great Recession and added that the Local 1000 fund "continued to struggle in 2012 and 2013 due to a slowdown in work."

In February 2014, Local 1000 merged with Local 235, but their respective pension funds remained separate. Moreover, no new members took part in the Local 1000 fund "and the ratio of actives-to-inactives continued to gradually decline as active participants retired or left the industry," Berger said. "This left fewer active members to support the benefits paid to Local 1000 pensioners."

Story updated on 1/16/20 with comments from Local 235 attorney and Local 235 actuary.