Aon Freezes DB

February 6, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Benefits consultant and insurance broker Aon Corp. is freezing its defined benefit pension plan as of April 1.

In addition, as of January 1, the Chicago-based consultant stopped making contributions to a defined contribution plan it set up in 2004 when it also closed its DB plan to new participants. A spokesman for Aon, which has about 37,000 employees worldwide, said the pension and savings plan changes were made to reduce costs and to base employees’ compensation more on performance, according to Business Insurance.

However, the company announced it is enhancing its 401(k) plan, now matching 100% of participant deferrals up to 6% of pay, versus the previous 50% match, the news report said.

For the fourth quarter of 2008, Aon reported profits of $10 million compared to $207 million a year ago, while income from continuing operations fell 35% to $123 million.

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