Facing Mounting Criticism, AOL CEO Reverses 401K Changes

After mounting public criticism of comments that AOL CEO Tim Armstrong made in announcing the company’s plan to change its 401K benefits, the tech giant yesterday said it would keep the old policy in place, and Armstrong apologized for singling out two employees’ families for their high medical bills. AOL had said it would switch its 401K program to one lump sum at year-end instead of throughout the year, and during an internal phone call to explain the changes, Armstrong had cited soaring health care costs, noting by way of example that the company had recently paid a million dollars each to cover medical costs for  two employees’  “distressed babies.”