RETIREE BENEFITS PROTECTION ASSOCIATION
INFORMATION CENTER

Welcome to the RBPA Information Center! Our purpose is to provide a basic overview of the objectives of the RBPA, along with information about the procedure for joining the Association.

Membership in the RBPA is for all U.S.-resident Motorola retirees who are concerned about preserving healthcare and other benefits promised by Motorola.. The RBPA is dedicated to achieving commitments from Motorola to treat all of its retirees equitably, consistent with promises made to employees during their period of active service, and at the time of retirement.

The recent action by Motorola in transferring funding and administration of retiree healthcare benefits, for those employees who had worked in its Semiconductor Products Sector, to a small spinoff company (Freescale Semiconductor) has raised questions about Motorola's commitment to equitable treatment of its retirees. It is estimated that the change in benefits administration for SPS retirees impacts as much as 20-25% of all Motorola retirees. This action may foreshadow future actions by Motorola to decrease or even eliminate healthcare and other benefits for other major sub-groups of its tens of thousands of retirees.

While retirees' healthcare coverage and premium costs today may differ little between Motorola and Freescale, for calendar year 2005, there are deep concerns about the longer-term future of Motorola retirees' healthcare coverage under Freescale administration. Consequently, a small committee of SPS retirees was formed in late 2004 to investigate the broad set of issues and concerns raised by Motorola's transfer of its healthcare obligations to Freescale.

Clearly Motorola has experienced a significant ethical lapse in transferring retiree healthcare administration to another, smaller and perhaps less viable company for a significant portion of its total US retirees. But is Motorola's action lawful?

Committee members have contacted legal as well as other experts to begin an investigation into the legality of Motorola's transfer of this responsibility. The Committee has learned that, at the minimum, clarifying that issue will involve the careful legal review of Motorola plan documents, which have been amended several times over the past several decades, as well as the documents Motorola has provided to employees over this same period which have promised retiree healthcare benefits.

It's clear that this detailed legal review will cost a minimum of several tens of thousands of dollars, and that's before any decision is made about potential legal action against Motorola.

To pursue these goals, the Retiree Benefits Protection Association (RBPA) has been organized to solicit a wide membership among Motorola retirees, and raise funds from its members to fund actions toward the stated goals. Our goal is a minimum of $50,000 in a "war chest" to begin this legal review process. We encourage all Motorola retirees to join together in this Association, to contribute to the fight for a remedy by Motorola … re-establishing its responsibility for providing healthcare benefits equitably to ALL Motorola retirees who have qualified for such benefits. RBPA members will receive frequent updates detailing progress toward these goals.

Your joining the RBPA will be an important step toward reaching these goals.

Please view the Membership Application page, fill out the application, submit it and join us today!

If you are resident of the Phoenix metro area, please visit the Motorola Retirees Web Site to find out more about Retirees Club in that area. Motorola retirees clubs offer a variety of valuable social and community service opportunities.