Central States, Southeast and Southwest Areas Pension Fund

In July 2023 the PBGC approved $35.8B in Special Financial Assistance under the American Rescue Plan Act, the largest such grant to a multi-employer plan. The infusion is projected to restore full benefits through 2051 for approximately 350,000 workers and retirees who had faced potential cuts of up to 60%. Under the assistance terms, the fund must maintain the grant proceeds in investment-grade fixed-income securities, which aligns with its existing conservative posture (per PBGC, 2023).

Capital flows exclusively from employer contributions mandated under collective bargaining agreements with Teamster Local Unions. The contributing employers — historically large LTL carriers, trucking firms and logistics operators — make per-hour contributions based on negotiated contracts. Because the participant base now far exceeds the active contributing workforce, the fund no longer generates sufficient organic contributions to cover benefits without the 2023 PBGC assistance.

The fund does not operate as a private equity or venture investor. Its allocation is concentrated in investment-grade fixed-income instruments, a requirement reinforced by the PBGC Special Financial Assistance grant terms. The fund owns direct commercial real estate — its Chicago headquarters — and holds residual claims in bankruptcy estates such as that of Yellow Corporation, but these are legacy exposures rather than active origination programs.

Yellow Corporation, one of Central States' largest remaining contributing employers, filed for Chapter 11 protection in 2023. The fund filed substantial claims for unpaid withdrawal liability, asserting that Yellow had triggered complete withdrawal by ceasing covered operations. As of late 2025 the bankruptcy court was adjudicating the priority and valuation of those claims, and the ultimate recovery remains uncertain (per PBGC and court filings, 2023–2024).

The fund is a multi-employer Taft-Hartley plan governed by a board of trustees — half appointed by the Teamsters and half by contributing employers. The union itself is not the plan sponsor; rather it designates trustees and negotiates the collective bargaining agreements that determine employer contribution rates. The fund and the union are legally separate, though their fates are linked through the health of the collectively bargained contribution base.

Central States Southeast and Southwest Areas operates both a Pension Fund and a separate Health and Welfare Fund. The two funds share contributing employers and overlapping participant populations but maintain distinct legal structures, trust boards and balance sheets. The Health and Welfare Fund provides medical, dental and vision benefits, while the Pension Fund delivers monthly retirement and death benefits.

The plan covers participants and contributing employers across the Central, Southeast and Southwest regions of the United States — a geography that historically tracked the Teamsters' organizing footprint in long-haul trucking, warehousing and local delivery. Employer headquarters are concentrated in the Midwest and South, with Chicago serving as the administrative center.