Teresa Ghilarducci, associate professor of economics at Notre Dame, testified Thursday at Ivy Tech State College.

Appearing before a congressional oversight meeting of the Education and Workforce Committee, Ghilarducci testified on current economic issues, specifically pension reform and maintaining working families in the recent economic turmoil.

Ghilarducci, also a director of the Higgins Research Center at Notre Dame, was asked to testify before the oversight meeting because of her expertise in the field of national pension law. President Clinton appointed her to the Pension Guaranty Corporation's advisory board.

"The topic of Pensions and the affects of pension reform on working individuals were discussed before the oversight committee," said Ghilarducci. Also on the agenda for the committee was working families and the economic woes they are currently facing.

"To maintain the working class education is not enough, new jobs need to be created that pay a living wage, also unionization plays a role. Supply [of work] does not create it's own demand." said Ghilarducci.

Ghilarducci will testify again Thursdau in front of the Congressional Education and Workforce committee dealing with the Enron scandal, but this time in Washington D.C.

" Greater regulation of 401Ks need to be evaluated in light of the Enron scandal," said Ghilarducci. 401Ks are retirement funds where workers invest a percentage of the money they earn back in to the company, gaining security as they retire. Enron recently filed for bankruptcy amidst allegations that they tampered with financial records, leaving many workers without a retirement plan.

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