The American Rescue Plan, signed into law by the Biden-Harris Administration, marked a historic step forward in protecting retirement security. In June of this year, the White House announced that over one million pensions have been protected through the American Rescue Plan, which aims to avert dramatic pension benefit cuts—potentially up to 45%—and safeguard the retirements of workers and retirees countrywide.
The administration announced that $36 billion from the American Rescue Plan will be allocated to the Central States Pension Fund, which was established in 1955 to provide pension benefits to union workers. According to a White House briefing, this funding represents “the largest ever award of federal financial support for worker and retiree pension security” and is the most significant award under the American Rescue Plan’s Special Financial Assistance Program.
This announcement brings the total number of pensions protected by the American Rescue Plan to over 1 million, including 61,000 In Michigan alone. Other states in the Great Lakes region will also see substantial benefits from this initiative:
- Pennsylvania 52,000
- Illinois 71,000
- New York 71,000
- Ohio 62,000
- Michigan 61,000
- Wisconsin 33,000
Pensions plans that have been protected so far represent workers from an array of unions, such as the Teamsters, United Food and Commercial Workers, United Brotherhood of Carpenters, United Steelworkers, United Auto Workers, Bakery and Confectionery Workers, Communications Workers of America, and others.
Many union workers have contributed to this fund over the years or even decades, making the prevention of pension cuts a top priority for the Biden-Harris Administration. This landmark relief ensures that the pension fund will be able to provide full benefits to workers and retirees through 2051, securing the financial futures of multi-employer workers and honoring their hard-earned benefits.
