The Markets May 15, 2009

NY Red Cross Drops 401(k) Match

The American Red Cross of Greater New York has joined the list of firms dropping or suspending 401(k) matches because of the economic downturn.
Reported by

The New York Times reported that the Red Cross chapter has discontinued its match, halted all salary increases and bonuses, and laid off a quarter of its 186-person staff.

The news report said the layoffs are expected to save $3 million to $4 million and eliminate positions across the board, including senior administrative staff members, emergency dispatchers, and employees who run training classes from local Red Cross offices.

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“We scoured all of our expenses and looked for every opportunity to reduce them,” Terry Bischoff, the chief executive of the chapter, told the Times. “We love our employees, they’re great; we value every one of them. We’ve worked very hard to have the number of layoffs as small as it could be.”

According to the news report, the Greater New York chapter is the largest Red Cross unit in the country, and dispatches workers to respond to emergencies—more than 3,000 a year—in all five boroughs of New York City and four counties in the lower Hudson Valley.

Products May 15, 2009

Baby Boomers Must 'ReDesign'

Two financial professionals have written a paper and designed a Web site for Baby Boomers planning to recoup their losses in their retirement plans.
Reported by

Compelled by the dilemma facing millions of Baby Boomers who have seen their investments and retirement plans battered by the bear market and recession, independent financial professionals Gary Brooks and Allyn Hughes said they started calling this group the “ReDesigners.”

According to a news release, the two define ReDesigners as Baby Boomers who, prior to 2008, thought they were doing all the right things to pursue a satisfying, financially secure retirement. ReDesigners contributed to retirement accounts, lived within their means, and looked forward to a certain lifestyle in retirement. Now, as a result of losses from the bear market of 2008 to 2009, those in that group have lost confidence in their ability to retire when they want to. “They must redesign their retirement planning and investments to align their money with their life goals and values,” the release said.

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Brooks and Hughes are co-founders of Financial Life Design, an independent firm based in Tacoma, Washington. They work with clients throughout the U.S. They created a financial consulting service that specifically addresses the needs of ReDesigners.

Brooks and Hughes have also written a “consumer-friendly” paper and Web site with resources to help ReDesigners. The paper, “Financial Life ReDesign—A Baby Boomer’s Guide to Reclaiming Financial Security After the Crash,” looks into the challenges and opportunities presented to the Baby Boomers.

The paper can be downloaded here.

The FinancialLifeReDesign.com web site also features personas of ReDesigners who are facing different personal and financial situations and want to redesign their financial lives.

“We wrote this paper and built the accompanying web site to help people put their situation in perspective, understand their opportunity to redesign their financial lives and, most importantly, take action based on an informed plan,” said Hughes.

 

 

 

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