Will 2025 See More Action On Retirement?

Last year, Southwest Airlines pilots approved a new contract under which pilots earned a substantial pay increase: a 50 percent salary increase over the life of the five year contract. The airline’s 11,000 pilots reportedly were negotiating not just for better pay, but also for improved retirement benefits and disability insurance along with a revised scheduling process.

Little did we know that the pilots were successful in improving their retirement benefits by negotiating a key new benefit that includes life income: a cash balance pension plan.