IBM, which has long operated one of the nation's largest corporate pension funds, said yesterday that it would freeze pension benefits for its American employees starting in 2008 and offer them only a 401(k) retirement plan in the future. IBM's announcement came at a time when a number of large employers have been freezing their pension plans; however, IBM is a financially healthy company, yet it has still chosen not to bear the expense of providing a firm promise of a lifetime pension.
See "I.B.M. to Freeze Pension Plans to Trim Costs", Mary Williams Walsh, The New York Times, January 5, 2006