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IBEW 648 Pension Plan
The IBEW 648 Pension Plan is the multiemployer retirement vehicle for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 648, based in Hamilton, Ohio.
IBEW 648 Pension Plan
The IBEW 648 Pension Plan is the multiemployer retirement vehicle for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 648, based in Hamilton, Ohio. Trustees including Business Manager Jeff McGuffey and Vice President Matt Von Stein govern the plan on behalf of the local's membership, which serves the electrical contracting workforce across southwestern Ohio. The plan operates under the joint trusteeship model standard to Taft-Hartley funds, with employer contributions negotiated through the National Electrical Contractors Association. The fund allocates across real estate, private credit, and infrastructure, reflecting the asset mix typical of mid-sized union pension plans seeking yield and inflation protection. Confirmed holdings include the ASB Allegiance Real Estate Fund, a core open-end vehicle, and the plan accepted a PBGC Special Financial Assistance grant under the American Rescue Plan Act to address funding shortfalls. The grant functions as a direct federal backstop, which effectively preserves the plan's ability to meet retiree obligations without resorting to benefit cuts. The plan was listed in critical and declining status by the U.S. Department of Labor as of 2021, a designation reserved for multiemployer plans projected to become insolvent within 20 years. Since that filing, the plan's trustees secured the PBGC grant — a material, dated event that alters its funding trajectory — and continue to oversee assets from the fund's administrative base in Hamilton, working with third-party administrator Zenith American Solutions for daily operations. Unlike state or corporate plans, the IBEW 648 Pension Plan's architecture is a collectively bargained multiemployer fund — meaning employer contributions are set by union contract, not sponsor discretionary funding. This structure ties the plan's health directly to local electrical construction cycles and the negotiated wage packages that feed its asset base. It is not a family office or active direct investor; it is a fiduciary for retiree checks, with investment decisions filtered through a board of union and management trustees.
General information
Firm type
Pension Fund
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Hamilton
Corporate office
Hamilton, OH, United States
Principals
Jeff McGuffey
Business Manager, IBEW Local 648 and Pension Plan Trustee
Matt Von Stein
Vice President, IBEW Local 648 and Pension Plan Trustee
Scott Brown
Union Trustee, IBEW 648 Pension Plan
Sector focus
Frequently asked questions
What is the current funding status of the IBEW 648 Pension Plan?
As of 2021, the plan was listed in Critical and Declining Status by the U.S. Department of Labor, meaning it was projected to become insolvent within the next 20 years. The plan has since been approved for a Special Financial Assistance grant from the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation, which is designed to restore its ability to pay full benefits through at least 2051.
Who runs investment decisions at the IBEW 648 Pension Plan?
Investment governance sits with the Board of Trustees, which includes union-side trustees Jeff McGuffey, Matt Von Stein, and Scott Brown. The board is jointly trustee with employer representatives, and Zenith American Solutions provides administrative services. The plan does not employ a dedicated internal investment team and is not managed as a single-family office.
Does the IBEW 648 Pension Plan make direct investments or fund commitments?
The plan invests primarily through commingled fund structures rather than direct or co-investment deal-by-deal activity. Confirmed exposure includes the ASB Allegiance Real Estate Fund, an open-end core U.S. real estate vehicle. There is no public evidence of direct co-investment programs or venture capital allocations outside of fund commitments.
What is the PBGC Special Financial Assistance grant and how does it apply to this plan?
The PBGC's Special Financial Assistance program, enacted under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, provides lump-sum grants to severely underfunded multiemployer pension plans. The IBEW 648 Pension Plan qualified for and received this grant, which is projected to cover all benefit payments through at least 2051 without cuts to accrued benefits.
How is the IBEW 648 Pension Plan related to IBEW Local 648 and NECA?
The pension plan is a separate legal trust established under collective bargaining agreements between IBEW Local 648 and the National Electrical Contractors Association. IBEW Local 648 negotiates hourly employer contributions that fund the plan, and its leadership serves as union-side trustees. Neither the local nor NECA owns the plan's assets — the trust is an independent fiduciary entity.
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