Association of BellTel Retirees

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The Association of BellTel Retirees, Inc. advocates for more than 205,000 Bell Atlantic, NYNEX, GTE, MCI, Idearc Media|Idearc/SuperMedia, and Verizon union and management retirees. The association represents active Verizon employees regarding retiree issues such as cash balance plan conversions and termination of management pension and healthcare benefits.

Corporations have been cutting back on retiree pensions and healthcare coverage. The Association’s advocacy works to its goal to prevent widespread cuts for Verizon and SuperMedia retirees.

The 134,000 members of the Association of BellTel Retirees have banded together to fight for the protection of retirees. The association believes that with all retirees acting together they can achieve pension inflation protection and, through congressional action, restore and protect the healthcare benefits that have been chiseled away through passage of federal retiree healthcare protection legislation.

In a class federal action lawsuit, participants in Verizon’s (VZ) pension plans who were involuntarily transferred to Idearc’s pension plans in November 2006 have pending claims of ERISA violations including:

• Breach of fiduciary duty for failure to comply with pension plan document rules; and
• Other ERISA violations justifying that the federal court order declaratory, injunctive and other equitable relief, and restore the retirees into Verizon’s sponsored employee benefit plans.

The Association of BellTel Retirees can be found on Facebook.

Proxy campaign success wins elimination of Verizon executive golden parachutes and bloated executive bonuses in 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007. The 2003 win was the first time any Bell System Company was ever defeated in a proxy vote in its 125-year history. The association won the Say on Pay proxy by a 50.18% vote in 2007.^{[citation needed]}

ProtectSeniors.Org is a Washington, D.C.-based lobbying group founded in 2006 to advocate for retired Americans. It was founded by Verizon retiree members of the Association of BellTel Retirees.

ProtectSeniors.Org is dedicated to the interests of corporate retirees in the United States. The group represents 14.3 million retirees from 392 companies, 45 labor union locals, 98 municipal, state and federal retiree groups and 16 associations.^{[citation needed]}

• Fortune Magazine - We Won't Be Ignored - August 13, 2001
• Business Week -Revenge of the Retirees - November 18, 2002
• Fortune Magazine – A Big Win For the Little Guys for Shareholder Activists 2003 Shaping Up to Be a Very Good Year – June 16, 2003
• USA Today - Pension Funds Fall Short of Guarantees - January 16, 2006
• Pittsburgh Tribune – Review - Verizon Retirees Seek Say on Pay - May 3, 2007
• New York Times - Verizon Vote On Pay Levels To Be Decided In a Recount –May 4, 2007
• New York Times – Say On Pay Gets Support at Verizon – May 19, 2007

*New York Times – Verizon to Put Executive Pay to Shareholder Vote – November 2, 2007

• Reuters - Verizon Retirees to Shareowners: Vote Nay on Pay- April 9, 2009
• Philadelphia Inquirer - Verizon Retirees Group Continues to Advocate for Change - April 22, 2009
• Huffington Post - Retirees Group To Vote Against Verizon CEO’s Pay – March 31, 2009
• Verizon Shareholders Approve Executive pay – May 7, 2009
• Dallas Business Journal - Idearc Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. sued by retirees - January 4, 2010
• Crain's New York Business - Putting Verizon CEO's Pay Through The Wringer - March 28, 2010 (subscription required)
• Crain's New York Business - Facing the Music on Boss Pay - June 20, 2010 ^{[permanent dead link]}
• Bergen Record - Retirees Seek To Limit Verizon Executive Bonuses -March 31, 2011^{[permanent dead link]}
• Star Ledger -Retirees Seek To Limi Verizon Executive Bonuses - March 31, 2011^{[permanent dead link]}
• Bloomberg News - Verizon Retiree Group Proposes Performance Share Payout Limits- March 29, 2011^{[permanent dead link]}
• Long Island Business News - Verizon retirees sue to protect their pensions - June 17, 2011
• Times Ledger - Doug retiree battles on to keep BellTel benefits - June 22, 2011
• Syosset Jericho Tribune - Fighting for Retiree Benefits for 15 Years - September 2, 2011
• The Ocean Star - Resident works with retiree group to protect pensions - October 7, 2011^{[permanent dead link]}
• Queens Tribune - Retirees Celebrate 15 Years of Fight - October 20, 2011
• Star Democrat - Easton resident continues fight for retiree benefits - December 1, 2011
• Courier News and Home News Tribune - N.J. must protect benefits of those already retired - December 6, 2011
• Daily Record - N.J. must protect benefits of those already retired - December 6, 2011

• Official website