Lee Iacocca losing pension, car in Chrysler bankruptcy

Reuters ^ | 5-29-09 | Emily Chassan

[Justaham]

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Lee Iacocca, the car executive credited with saving Chrysler from bankruptcy in the 1980s, is to lose a big chunk of his pension and a guaranteed life-long company car due to the U.S. automaker's bankruptcy filing two decades later.

Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli told a U.S. bankruptcy court on Thursday that Iacocca's pension would be among the obligations Chrysler will no longer have to pay if it gets bankruptcy court approval to sell itself to a "New Chrysler" to be owned by its union, the U.S. and Canadian governments and Fiat SpA (FIA.MI).

[al baby]

Man that is just so funny

[hoosiermama]

Hope Nardelli loses his too.

[Hildy]

Other people’s misfortune is humorous to you? Really?

[Hildy]

Maybe it’s just wealthy people, huh?

[ml/nj]

So let's see.

All those retired UAW guys keep their pensions and lifetime medical benefits, but the guy who made it possible for them to have these benefits loses his.

Welcome to the Obamanation.

ML/NJ

[WellyP]

Any bets that Lee comes out swinging with an add for FORD!

[newhouse]

Boy you are right on target.

[Jack Black]

He should apply to the Pension Guarantee Board and get what is coming to him.

It’s funny to some, when it’s Lee. But what about the thosands of retired non-Union Chrysler employees? My mom lives off the pension my father earned in working 40+ years for a fortune 500 company. I am sure their are many elderly former Chrysler employees and spouses who are getting screwed in this deal.

Funny, we haven’t heard any slice of life stories about THEM.

[lilylangtree]

Given that the taxpayers bailed out Chrysler when he was Chair, the foul-mouth Lee Iacocca took the news well.

[kittykat77]

May Iacocca be reduced to driving a Ford Pinto, a product whose development he oversaw when he headed up Ford and whose catastrophic defects he casually overlooked. Or perhaps he can ride in one of thousands of defective school busses whose dangerous gas tanks he successfully lobbied the government to avoid being retrofitted for safety.

Karma minds.

[Gaffer]

I’d sooner eat a bullet than buy a Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep. That goes for anything, anything GM makes or will make, either.

[REPANDPROUDOFIT]

Am I to understand that the NON-Union retirees will be losing large portions of their pensions. (The perks like the car-for-life may need to go, can't argue with that.) But why is it OK to cut their retirement income? Is it OK because they are the "evil corporate" sector. When it comes to the union guy, no one is allowed to reduce his pension or change his health plans because "he has counted on that all his life". Well, I counted on certain things to be there when I retired. I sure didn't plan for paying higher taxes to cover the UAW retirees' costs. I can't believe the double standard here.

[silentreignofheroes]

He can borrow my Pinto,it ain’t blew up yet.

[taildragger]

This makes me crazy, GM as well.

Usually in bankruptcy, do you not stop the defined benefit plan, freeze it and then "maybe" offer it again on restart?

The UAW engineered that the Pension lives.

IMHO this is insane.....

[trumandogz]

Wow, They are really going to take away Iacocca's K-Car?

They must be really serious.

[AD from SpringBay]

Those evil, rich! All thanks be to Great Leader for setting this injustice to the greater good of the worker! Let us bow now in the direction of Chicago, Great Leader’s homeland (sorta).

[al baby]

Some people you betcha !!!

[GOP_Lady]

Mr. Iococca has earned his pension and car.

Let him keep them.

[Gatún(CraigIsaMangoTreeLawyer)]

Be careful. Hildy is going to accuse you of being anti-Jew any minute now because you disagreed with her.