Instead, as a consolation prize the auto companies offered and the unions took larger company payments to employee 401(k) plans. This was a significant loss for newer workers who were not grandfathered into the preexisting pension plans. Put differently, they will receive one-third to one-half of what workers with equivalent careers received from pension plans. It was a victory that the UAW raised the demand to allow newer workers into the pension plans. It challenged the belief that the loss of pension plans was irreversible with 401(k)s being the only alternative.