Trustee subcommittee agrees on fair AMO DC Plan reform

A subcommittee of the joint union-employer AMO Defined Contribution Plan Trustees December 1 agreed on a proposed way of relying exclusively on length of AMO service to calculate individual participant benefits.

Details of this fair reform initiative - under which participant age would no longer be a factor in the benefit formula - cannot be released to Plan participants until it is vetted by independent counsel specializing in pension and retirement account law to ensure that the proposal complies fully with the applicable federal statutes and with Internal Revenue Service requirements.

The proposal must also be agreed to by the full union-employer AMO Defined Contribution Plan Board of Trustees.

AMO National President Paul Doell - who serves as chairman of the AMO Plans Boards of Trustees - and AMO National Executive Vice President Mike Finnigan represented the union in the meeting.

"This issue is important to all seagoing AMO members," Doell said. "I believe this proposal would benefit the greatest number of AMO DC Plan participants at the least cost to employers."