Lawsuit delay granted in IBM pension case

The judge presiding over a massive pension suit against IBM, which could cost the company more than $6.5 billion, agreed Friday to a short delay while settlement talks continued.

The lawsuit, which contends the “cash balance” pension plan the company adopted in the 1990s discriminated against 140,000 older workers, has been closely watched by scores of large companies that switched to similar pension plans in the 1980s and 1990s.

The judge overseeing the case ruled in favor of the workers earlier this year. If IBM does not settle the case, a judgment could cost it at least $6.5 billion. That would be the largest pension judgment in history.

Bankruptcy

United seeks plan for $500M in cuts

Struggling to put together a new bankruptcy exit plan, United Airlines said Friday it was in talks with its unions about the need for an additional $500 million in cost cuts.

The possibility of more reductions, which could include more layoffs, illustrates the depth of United’s financial plight.

They would come on top of $655 million in yearly cost savings the company identified two weeks ago and $2.5 billion in wage and benefit cuts it made a year ago.