PwC Agrees to $264-million Pension Cash Infusion

October 3, 2002 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) has agreed to pump $264 million into its pension plan as part of an agreement with the federal pension insurer.

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) said PwC would contribute $200 million by next week and an additional $64 million by March 15, 2003, the PBGC announced. The defined benefit plan covers nearly 47,000 workers and retirees.

The five-year agreement grew out of negotiations with PwC started after getting word that PwC had agreed to sell its consulting business to IBM in a $3.5-billion deal that closed Wednesday.

PwC also agreed to maintain the pension plan’s existing credit balance and make annual plan contributions in amounts greater than required by law, the PBGC said.

The agency said the agreement is a product of PBGC’s Early Warning Program in which officials monitor companies and negotiates agreements when transactions occur that might impact workers’ pensions or the federal pension insurance program.

The PBGC announcement also disclosed that PricewaterhouseCoopers serves under contract as outside auditor of the financial condition of PBGC’s single-employer and multiemployer insurance programs.

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