Twinkie CEO Admits Company Took Employees Pensions and Put It Toward Executive Pay

Hostess company continues to screw over its workers.

December 11, 2012

Twinkie-maker Hostess continues to screw over its workers. The company is in the process of complete liquidation and 18,000 unionized workers are set to lose their jobs. More troubling – they could lose their pensions.

According to a report by the Wall Street Journal , Hostess’ CEO, Gregory Rayburn, essentially admitted that his company stole employee pension money and put it toward CEO and senior executive pay (aka “operations”). While this isn't technically illegal, it's another sleazy theft by Hostess executives - who've paid themselves handsomely while running their company into the ground. Just last month, a judge agreed to let Hostess executives suck another $1.8 million out of the bankrupt company to pay bonuses to CEOs.  

If there's no way to recover the money for the Hostess pension plans for workers, then the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. will have to foot the bill to make sure workers get at least some of the retirement money they paid in.

Hostess shows us clearly what Bain-style predatory capitalism is all about: big bucks for the very few rich executives, layoffs and poverty for the workers and their communities.  READ MORE

Goldman Sachs CEO Describes 'Secret Meetings' at Insider Trading Trial

Blankfein, Lloyd CEO Goldman Sachs

NEW YORK — The CEO of Goldman Sachs, Lloyd Blankfein, told a New York federal court that his former colleague Rajat Gupta regularly attended highly confidential board meetings.

The chief executive took the stand for the second time in as many years to testify about Gupta, accused in one of the highest profile insider trading cases for years.

Talks at board and committee meetings on which Gupta sat -- before allegedly passing insider tips to hedge fund manager Raj Rajaratnam -- were not for public consumption, Blankfein said.

"You're not supposed to discuss," he said.

Referring to a 2008 strategy meeting held by the powerful US bank in Saint Petersburg, Russia, he said: "The fact it was in the board meeting meant it was confidential."

Blankfein is one of the biggest witnesses prosecutors are using against Gupta, an Indian-born immigrant who reached the pinnacle of US business. The former Goldman board member was also on the board of Procter & Gamble and the director of McKinsey & Co.   READ MORE