Retirement

The head of the nation's largest public employee union plans to step down, setting up a heated contest to guide a political powerhouse that has been among the biggest spenders in Democratic campaigns.

Rhode Island lawmakers are mulling changes big and small to a public pension overhaul proposal after hearing from hundreds of Rhode Islanders during 30 hours of hearings on the legislation.

Rhode Island is ground zero for pension reform right now. The state, which has found itself with an unfunded pension liability of between $7 billion and $9 billion, has proposed a hybrid defined benefit/defined contribution plan to reform its retirement system.

Most of the companies that either suspended or reduced their 401(k) matches during the economic downturn have reinstated them, business consultant Towers Watson said in a study released Wednesday.

Social Security not only shouldn't be cut as part of the United States debt reduction measures, but, according to Merton Bernstein, an expert on Social Security and the Walter D. Coles Professor Emeritus at Washington University in St. Louis, it wouldnt take much to ensure Social Securitys viability 75 years...

Our seventh annual competition features a few surprises, a lot of stalwarts and more broker votes than ever before.