8-10: Delphi Salaried Retiree Pension Plan Trusteed by the PBGC—July 31, 2009

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Published: Monday, 10 August 2009 22:14

We Are Continuing to Seek Justice for the Delphi Salaried Retirees

 

    Delphi Salaried Retirees Association interim chair Den Black said today that the DSRA remains committed to challenge the termination of the Delphi Salaried Pension Plan.

 

    In a surprise turn of events today, the PBGC has withdrawn its Federal District Court action seeking appointment as trustee and approval to terminate the several Delphi pension plans, including those of salaried employees and retirees. Under the PBGC-Delphi trustee agreement the PBGC purports to become trustee of Delphi’s salaried and hourly defined benefit pension plans. The PBGC said it will terminate the plans effective July 31, 2009, and will have all of the rights and powers of a trustee specified in Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) or otherwise granted by law.  The PBGC’s ability to terminate a plan in this fashion is subject to significant questions under ERISA Law.

 

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7-22: PBGC To Assume Delphi Pension Plans

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Published: Wednesday, 22 July 2009 16:22

WASHINGTON—The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation today announced it will assume responsibility for the pension plans of 70,000 workers and retirees of Delphi Corp., the nation’s largest producer of automotive parts. The PBGC will initiate action to become trustee of the plans, a process that could last up to several months.

Click here for the article.

Click here for a link to Questions and Answers.

As of this posting, the DSRA has not yet released a statement regarding this development.  Any statement will be posted as soon as it is available.

7-16: DSRA Takes Legal Action to Protect Salaried Pension

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Published: Thursday, 16 July 2009 16:46

There have many questions regarding the use of DSRA membership donations pertaining to the legal fight to retain our pensions. Below is a press release regarding a law suit, filed on our behalf, to appoint a new Delphi salaried pension plan administrator. We are asking the court to remove the current plan administrator, Delphi executive leadership, due to the obvious conflict of interest. This news release details the legal action now underway in U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Michigan and objections filed with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court.

 DSRA’s ability to maintain this legal battle is dependent on continuing donations from our membership. Now is the time to redouble our efforts to fill the legal defense coffers.   Please donate now and encourage other retirees and active Delphi salaried employees to do the same.   Donations can be made on the DSRA website (www.delphisalariedretirees.org) or by sending a check to DSRA, P.O. Box 64, Carmel, IN 46082.

   July 16, 2009

Miller & Chevalier Written

PRESS RELEASE

DSRA Takes Legal Action To Protect Our Rights In Our Retirement Pensions

            On June 1, 2009, Delphi announced that it was seeking to have the pension plan for its salaried employees terminated and transferred to the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (“PBGC”). Obviously, this development gravely concerned the Delphi Salaried Retiree Association (“DSRA”), particularly as we have not been kept advised by our Plan Administrator of any negotiations over the threatened termination of our retirement plan.   We want our pension rights protected to the fullest extent of the law.

             To protect our rights, DSRA has hired legal counsel, the Washington D.C. law firm of Miller & Chevalier, to look into the situation. After doing so, we learned that our current Plan Administrators are the individuals who make up Delphi’s Executive leadership. We have serious concerns about whether Delphi executives can protect our pension rights while at the same time serving Delphi’s shareholders and creditors. With the help of our new lawyers, we have decided to challenge this clear conflict of interest by filing a lawsuit to get rid of our current trustees and have a court appoint a new Plan Administrator loyal only to us. In particular, because the Plan Administrator has the ability to agree to a summary termination of the plan with the PBGC, so that we cannot even challenge in a court any termination, we must have an independent, objective Plan Administrator overseeing our interests at this time of threatened plan termination.

             Our lawsuit, which DSRA at this time is filing in the United States District Court in the Eastern District of Michigan, asks that the Court remove Delphi executives as the Plan Administrator and appoint an independent Plan Administrator who can step into proceedings related to our pension plan and its threatened termination. We have asked the court for an immediate injunction prohibiting the current Plan Administrator (the Delphi executives) from negotiating a termination with the PBGC, until our lawsuit concerning their removal is fully resolved.

             Separately, we have filed an objection in the Delphi bankruptcy proceedings to the provision in the plan of reorganization stating that our plan, by agreement, shall be terminated and transferred to the PBGC. We have noted to the bankruptcy court that our Michigan lawsuit may prevent any such agreement and that, in any event, the plan’s termination is neither imminent nor assured due to other procedural safeguards we intend to invoke against termination (such as our right to challenge in a federal court adjudication the plan’s termination).

             These are significant and important steps we have taken to protect our pension rights. We shall not stand idly by, while those who are, by law, required to protect our pension interests instead are subservient to Delphi’s shareholders and creditors. We will keep you apprised of the legal developments, as we expect these matters will be resolved in a matter of just weeks if not days. 

P.S. The actual Court filings can be found on: http://www.delphidocket.com/delphi 

Docket: 

18277 Objection

18303 Intervention