Verizon Faces Suit Over Pension Risk Transfer to Prudential, RGA

Verizon Communications Inc. was hit with a proposed class action Monday by retirees who say it improperly shifted pension benefit responsibilities to “risky” insurance companies Prudential and RGA.

Ex-Verizon engineer Maureen Dempsey and two other former employees filed their complaint in the US District Court for the Southern District of New York. They allege the telecommunications company breached its fiduciary duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act and jeopardized their retirement savings.

The lawsuit is the latest to take aim at pension de-risking transactions, which offer companies a way to shed the liability of sponsoring a market-dependent ...