Administration November 6, 2001

White Collar Workers Outlive Blues

June 11, 2001 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The IRS's new actuarial table, which could determine the amount that employers should put away to cover pension obligations, shows that at age 65, blue-collar workers have a mortality rate 42% higher than those workers in white-collar professions.
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The Society of Actuaries RP-2000 Table, which reflects more than 190,000 deaths and close to 11 million life-years, and represents the largest pension plan study undertaken to date, also shows that the impact of job status on mortality is greater than that of gender, where among 65-year olds, men have mortality rates 29% higher than women.

A committee of the American Academy of Actuaries, which provides independent analysis to elected officials and regulators, recommended that the IRS adopt the table.

Adoption of the table would translate to a reduction in the costs of defined benefit pension plans for firms where blue-collar workers make up a large percentage of workers employed.

For more information about the RP-2000 Table, go to
http://www.soa.org/research/rp2000.html

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