[chrisfinazzo]

In the past, this was generally true, but not anymore. Case in point, my great uncle - yes, that's a thing in genealogy, look it up - was fortunate enough to retire with one in the late 80's/early 90's.

You don't even have to know much about the system to understand how this works.

Defined benefit - Your pension is X, determined by rank, years of service, etc.

Defined contribution - While the above conditions may still apply, the bottom line of how well you do is determined by how much you put in on a regular basis.

Not hard to imagine why most companies made the switch or simply stopped offering traditional pensions - they're really expensive over the long term.

[CalRobert]

I never heard anyone in the US in my 30 years there use the term "pension" to refer to the typical retirement plans available in the US.

In UK and Ireland, though, most retirement plans are called "pensions", even defined contribution.

The first time I told my mom about pensions after moving, she said "oh my god you get a PENSION?!??" like it referred to the paycheck for life her parents got from the paper mill.

It's just semantics.

[nilkn]

I think the point is about vocabulary more than anything. Most people (in the US) understand the word "pension" to specifically refer to a defined benefit plan.