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Election 2004 How are Working Families Doing Under the Bush Administration? Print copies for distribution. BANKRUPTCIES |
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employers dump worker benefits Employers have used bankruptcy to terminate pension plans and health care benefits for retirees. 81 percent of corporate benefit plans are underfunded, according to Wilshire Associates Inc., and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., is itself operating at a deficit, [Pension Security is Becoming More of a Worry, AP, 9/15/04] |
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workers fall into debt Personal bankruptcies have increased in 49 states and the District of Columbia, as personal debt (not including mortgages) now averages $18,700 per household. Twenty years ago, families were saving about 11 percent of their income. Today, savings is 1 percent. By contrast, credit card debt was only 4 percent of family income then. Today, it is 12 percent. [Warren and Tyagi, The Two-Income Trap] Last year, middle class families faced record numbers of bankruptcies. In 2003, 33 percent more middle class families filed for bankruptcy than in 2000. In the U.S. during 2003, one household every 19 seconds went bankrupt. [U.S. Courts, Administrative Office, Bankruptcy Statistics] |
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