Description: This is an article that highlights an alternative method for determining the impact of a change in interest rates on the factor which converts a life annuity to a 100% joint and survivor annuity. It also discusses the factors for early retirement and deferred retirement.

Description: The editorial provides an overview of articles in this issue that explore and illustrate solutions to current retirement challenges.

Description: This article is about the Society of Actuaries' Education and Examination Research Paper Committee awarding 30 Fellowship credits to Krzysztof M. Ostaszewski, Ph.D., ASA, for his paper, 'Macroeconomic Aspects of Private Retirement Programs.' This is the twelfth such paper approved for Fellowship credit under the SOA’s Future Education Methods program. The paper analyzes possible macroeconomic factors contributing to the decline in the use of defined benefit plans and proposes an alternative hypothesis for the cause of the decline.

Description: The article explores options for defined-benefit retirement plan sponsors to transfer pension risk, focusing on recent trends in the United Kingdom.

Description: This article discusses the risk-sharing arrangements provided by a number of different types of hybrid pensions, focusing on hybrid designs in the United States, Canada and the Netherlands, with particular emphasis on the New Brunswick (Canada) shared risk plan.

Description: This is an article from The Actuary that discusses the need to reform defined benefit plans. The number of defined benefit plans in the United States has declined significantly over the past 20 years. If Congress overlooks the interests of plan sponsors in its reform, we're likely to witness further erosion of an already weakened defined benefit system, and America's workers would be the ultimate losers.

Description: This article describes the Joint and Survivor Factor. In defined benefit plans, ERISA requires that the normal form of the pension must be on a qualified joint and survivor basis. If the plan defines the pension in terms of a lifetime pension to the participant only, the lifetime pension must be multiplied by the joint and survivor factor. This article shows what happens to the factor as the interest rate increases.

Description: This article discusses the non-qualified market opportunities presented by the new limitations imposed on qualified pension plans.

Description: Editorial that explores how underlying issues of the economic bubble were actuarial in nature.

Description: The author shares the story of his actuarial career and provides insight into the development of retirement today and the past and future of the pension actuary.