ThemiserablefateofEnron’semplo-考网

The miserable fate of Enron’s employees will be a landmark in business history, one of those awful events that everyone agrees must never be allowed to happen again. This urge is understandable and noble: thousands have lost virtually all their retirement savings with the demise of Enron stock. But making sure it never happens again may not be possible, because the sudden impoverishment of those Enron workers represents something even larger than it seems. It’s the latest turn in the unwinding of one of the most audacious promises of the 20th century.

　　The promise was assured economic security—even comfort—for essentially everyone in the developed world. With the explosion of wealth, that began in the 19th century it became possible to think about a possibility no one had dared to dream before. The fear at the center of daily living since caveman days—lack of food, warmth, shelter—would at last lose its power to terrify. That remarkable promise became reality in many ways. Governments created welfare systems for anyone in need and separate programs for the elderly (Social Security in the U.S.). Labour unions promised not only better pay for workers but also pensions for retirees. Giant corporations came into being and offered the possibility—in some cases the promise—of lifetime employment plus guaranteed pensions? The cumulative effect was a fundamental change in how millions of people approached life itself, a reversal of attitude that most rank as one of the largest in human history. For millennia the average person’s stance toward providing for himself had been. Ultimately I’m on my own. Now it became, ultimately I’ll be taken care of.

　　The early hints that this promise might be broken on a large scale came in the 1980s. U.S. business had become uncompetitive globally and began restructuring massively, with huge Layoffs. The trend accelerated in the 1990s as the bastions of corporate welfare faced reality. IBM ended its no-layoff policy. AT&T fi

A.the 401(k) made them responsible for their own future
B.Enron offered to add company stock to their investment
C.their employers intended to cut back on pension spending
D.Enron’s offer was similar to a defined-benefit plan

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答案： B

本题解析：

从文章第四段可知，401(k)与以往的defined-benefit plan一个重要的不同在于，前者是让职工在很大程度上去负责自己的经济命运（比如说自己决定要不要将那些钱做进一步的投资），而后者则是让公司来负责。而第五段又进一步指出Enron的政策“matched a certain proportion of each employee’s 401(k) contribution with company stock”即职工在公司401(k)上的投资量与他将来可以获得的公司股份挂上钩。由此可推知，职工们选择Enron作为其唯一的投资对象很可能是受了公司提供的这种免费的诱惑，故B项符合。