Congressman Dan Kildee (MI-05), Chief Deputy Whip of the House Democratic Caucus, today along with Congressman Tim Ryan (OH-13) and Congressman Mike Turner (OH-10), made their latest bipartisan push to help the restore pensions for the Delphi Salaried Retirees. In a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, and Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, the members requested a status update on a Trump-era Delphi report.
The letter was also signed by Representatives Joyce Beatty (D-OH), Ralph Norman (R-SC), Vicente Gonzalez (D-TX), Austin Scott (R-GA), Brian Higgins (D-NY), Steve Chabot (R-OH), Chris Jacobs (R-NY), Bill Johnson (R-OH), Elissa Slotkin (D-MI), Joseph D. Morelle (D-NY), Bryan Steil (R-WI), Warren Davidson (R-OH), Bill Huizenga (R-MI), Lisa C. McClain (R-MI), John R. Moolenaar (R-MI), John Katko (R-NY), Marcy Kaptur (D-OH), Victoria Spartz (R-IN), Debbie Lesko (R-AZ), Jack Bergman (R-MI), Debbie Dingell (D-MI), Salud Carbajal (D-CA), Andy Levin (D-MI), James R. Baird (R-IN), and David Joyce (R-OH).
"The Delphi Salaried Pension Plan was unfairly terminated. This unfair action devastated the long-term financial security of the almost 22,000 salaried employees at Delphi whose benefits were significantly reduced. These employees deserve the benefits they have earned," wrote the members.
"Please know that we stand ready to work with you to ensure the Delphi retirees, and all American workers can be secure in the benefits they have earned," they continued.
"The Delphi Salaried Retirees have been working towards the restoration of our pension plan for 12 years. We are grateful for the effort and support these representatives and this letter offers in our quest. Responding to a Presidential Directive should not be taken lightly. It is our hope that the recipients of this letter will do the right thing and respect those who played by the rules only to meet with a horrible injustice," said Bruce Gump, Chairman of Delphi Salaried Retirees Association.
Kildee, Ryan and Turner have long been fighting to restore Delphi workers' pensions. In 2013, they founded the Congressional Task Force on Delphi Pensions to advocate for the Delphi retirees, and since then they have pressed administration officials from both parties to do the right thing and make the Delphi Salaried workers' pensions whole.
See the full text of the letter here and below.
The Honorable Janet L. Yellen
Secretary
U.S. Department of the Treasury
1500 Pennsylvania Ave., NW
Washington, D.C., 20429
The Honorable Martin J. Walsh
Secretary
U.S. Department of Labor
200 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, D.C., 20210
The Honorable Gina M. Raimondo
Secretary
U.S. Department of Commerce
1401 Constitution Ave., NW
Washington, D.C., 20230
Dear Secretary Yellen, Secretary Raimondo, and Secretary Walsh:
We write to inquire into the status of the report of the Delphi salaried retirees terminated pensions, and the recommendations from you and your respective agencies, as requested by the Memorandum from the President on Pensions of Delphi Corporation Retirees and Other Retirees Covered by Vulnerable Pension Plans, issued by President Donald J. Trump on October 22, 2020. Specifically, this presidential memorandum requests that the Secretary of Treasury, Secretary of Commerce, and Secretary of Labor review the Delphi pension matter and inform the President of any appropriate actions that may be taken to address the lost pension benefits, including potential legislation, and to bring additional transparency to the original decision to terminate the plan.
In 2009, the Delphi Salaried Pension Plan was unfairly terminated. This unfair action devastated the long-term financial security of the almost 22,000 salaried employees at Delphi whose benefits were significantly reduced. These employees deserve the benefits they have earned.
As of June 10, 2021, we have not seen this report or have been made aware of its completion. We understand this review was due on January 20, 2021 -- before you assumed your current roles. We believe it is important that Congress still have the opportunity to review the recommendations provided by your agencies.
As such, we ask you to provide us with an update on the status of the report. Specifically, we ask you to inform us when work on this report commenced, when you expect this report to be completed, and when Congress can expect to receive a copy for review. Please know that we stand ready to work with you to ensure the Delphi retirees, and all American workers can be secure in the benefits they have earned.