Where do you think pensions make money from? If the market is down and they have not expenses, defined benefit pension plan charge the current workers extra in the event the stock market is down. Alternatively, it bankrupts the pension plan. As the number of retirees grows and they live longer, you also need to charge current workers even higher premiums. It was a great idea, but it isn't sustainable without massive assistance from the government which is why most of these plans that survive are for government jobs: they can just charge the taxpayer (sorry, no choice!) or print money.