Olin Corp. Beats Back Claims of Improper Pension Shortchanging

Olin Corp. defeated a proposed class action accusing the Missouri-based ammunition maker of shortchanging certain employees’ retirement benefits by calculating their pensions using unreasonable lifespan data and interest rate assumptions.

Pensions that include post-death benefits for a worker’s surviving spouse are legally required to be the “actuarial equivalent” of a traditional, single-life pension, Judge Cristian M. Stevens said. Olin satisfied this requirement by calculating married workers’ pensions using the actuarial assumptions and interest rates set forth in its pension plan document, Stevens said, rejecting claims that it was “unreasonable” under federal law to use allegedly outdated interest rates and actuarial ...