Boeing dangles pension buyout opportunity

Boeing is reaching out to its former employees, seeing if they will cash out of their pension plans.

The company has been looking for ways to trim its mounting pension payouts. It has now sent letters to about 40,000 former employees, asking them if they would be willing to take their vested pension benefit as a lump sum payment or monthly annuity.

This is the first time Boeing has tried this with former employees. It is a voluntary opportunity and the company says there are no plans to make this an option for future retirees.

Boeing has already trimmed its future pension costs by announcing that 68,000 current non-union employees will transition to a 401(k) retirement plan in 2016.

Union machinists voted to make the same change, albeit reluctantly, in order to gain work on the 777X.