Converting your 401(k) into a pension

Old fashioned pensions look a lot more attractive after some of the damage our retirements took during the last couple years. And now some companies are looking to add some old-fashioned pension benefits to retirement plans, reports Kiplinger.com

You already can do this yourself if you've got time and can wade through some potentially eye-glazing insurance calculations. You can even do a lot of it more simply just by stopping the damage we inflict ourselves saving too little too late.

But Kiplinger outlines something informally known as a DBk plan, which is a 401(k) with a dollop of pension benefits. Employer matching would be more generous too in exchange for some streamlining that also would mean sweeter deals for upper echelon execs, writes Kiplinger's Joan Pryde.

It's too soon to tell how popular the new plans might become. But look for employers to restore some sort of improved retirement plans as soon as they can, suggests WorldAtWork.org. They value the plans as much as workers do, a new study found.