PBGC Guarantees Full Pensions for First Brands’ Workers

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation has guaranteed full pension benefits for more than 1,600 First Brands Group LLC retirees covered under three terminated pension plans.

First Brands, an auto parts company, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in Texas in September 2025. Patrick James, the company’s founder and former CEO, was indicted this year and charged with an alleged multi-billion‑dollar fraud involving fake collateral and misleading financial statements that contributed to First Brands’ bankruptcy.

On April 30, the company terminated its three pension plans:

• Retirement Plan for Bargaining Unit Employees of Fostoria and Greenville ;
• Cardone Industries Inc. Union Employees’ Pension Plan; and
• Dalton Corp., Warsaw Manufacturing Facility Pension Plan.

Typically, a Chapter 11 bankruptcy allows a company to restructure its debts, but First Brands began to expedite the process as it burned through cash. On June 12, a Houston bankruptcy judge cleared the company to proceed with its plan to liquidate.

According to the PBGC, which assumed responsibility for the pension plans, no worker or retiree under the three plans will receive any reductions to their entitled benefits.

“This action assures workers and retirees that the benefits they earned will be there when they need them,” said PBGC Director Janet Dhillon in a statement. “By stepping in to safeguard these plans, PBGC is ensuring that pension promises are kept and that participants can remain confident their full benefits are secure.”