Sprint Freezes Pensions for Half of Workforce

Sprint Nextel Corp. froze pension plans for almost half of its 80,000 employees and won’t offer a fixed retirement benefit to new workers as the company cuts labor costs to compete with other wireless carriers.

Chief Executive Gary Forsee, who orchestrated the $36-billion merger of Sprint Corp. and Nextel Communications Inc., is revamping the retirement plans as he shifts the company’s focus to the wireless business.

Cingular Wireless, the largest U.S. mobile-phone services company, and No. 2 Verizon Wireless don’t have defined-benefit plans. Sprint Nextel, based in Reston, Va., is No. 3.