PBGC Will Meet with Participants in Hawaii Baking Company Pension Plan for Bargaining Unit Employees

Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) representatives will meet with current and former workers and retirees of Hawaii Baking/Moanaloa Baking Company who were covered by the Hawaii Baking Company Pension Plan for Bargaining Unit Employees to explain the federal pension program and answer questions.

To ensure uninterrupted payment of benefits to retirees, PBGC is seeking court permission to become trustee of the plan because the corporate sponsor abandoned the plan. The plan covers about 225 workers and retirees and is underfunded by approximately $2.5 million. PBGC uses its assets to make up the shortfall and guarantees to pay benefits as promised by the plan up to the maximum allowed by law.

Meetings are scheduled at the following location, date and times:

Participants are encouraged to bring copies of the following documents: birth certificates, marriage certificates, spouses birth certificate (if applicable), and any documentation from the company of work history and earnings, such as W-2's, pay stubs, wage records or social security earnings records. PBGC will copy and certify these documents at the time of the meeting. Representatives from PBGC will be interviewing employees to gather information needed for administering the plan. Anyone with questions should contact PBGC's Customer Service Center at 1-800-400-7242. For hearing-impaired TTY/TDD users, call the federal relay service toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 800-400-7242.

PBGC is a federal corporation created under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974. It currently guarantees payment of basic pension benefits earned by 44 million American workers and retirees participating in nearly 33,000 private-sector defined benefit pension plans. The agency receives no funds from general tax revenues. Operations are financed largely by insurance premiums paid by companies that sponsor pension plans and investment returns.