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Information on this page is provided by Roseanne Jefferson.
Roseanne is a retired USPS employee with an extensive background in USPS
retirement, disability retirement, OWCP, EEO, Labor Relations and HR.
She conducts individual and group counseling and is able to
comprehensively discuss the pros and cons of employees who are on OWCP,
disability retirement and regular retirement. Roseanne will be happy
to answer your postal retirement questions. Contact Roseanne at
roseanne.jefferson@yahoo.com. |
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Postal Retirement
Q&A May 2012 |
Good Day Postal Employees
......and still
a-waiting!!!.....of course I mean for
the early out. After all the reading,
and watching CSPAN, and in touch with
reliable contacts, I am doing
everything I can to provide you all
with accurate information, but it's
still a waiting game. I will put
myself out on a limb here and say
when/if they approve an early out, I
can see them offering a cash
incentive....I don't see them adding
years (to an employees' overall years
of service). I simply don't see them
changing the structure of federal
regulations of VERA's with or without
incentives. VERA / Early Out
retirements have very specific rules
and regulations that are requirements
to being eligible for an offered early
out VERA. Monetary incentives are
included in the federal regulations
for implementation in an early out. To
approve additional years, would at
MINIMUM, require them to change
computer programs to incorporate
"years" into service time, which is
simply not there....I don't see it. I
would think it would require manual
calculations (to try to add "years" to
service time that does not exist) on a
NARCES retirement estimate. Those
estimates are used for all federal
employees, not just postal, so I don't
see OPM changing how the annuity
estimates are run for just one
agency......HEY....settle down....it's
just my opinion, it could happen....I
don't think it will though.
Q
1. Hi Roseanne, This is Ms. D, and you
helped me fill out my paperwork for
disability retirement last August (I
was on crutches from a hip surgery). I
just got my approval letter and should
get my first check in May. The
questions I have are1) when reading
the big blue book (pg 259) it says
that I am "subject to the 80% earnings
limit". Does that mean that I could
work (nothing strenuous or demanding,
just for spending money) and make up
to 80% of what I made when I was
carrying mail for the post office?
When I was calculating it I got that I
could work and make up to $40,000 a
year. Is that right? What are your
recommendations on this matter? And 2)
I received a form about Unemployment
Insurance, it says to take the form to
the unemployment office if/when I file
a claim. Does that mean that eligible
for unemployment? Should I file for
unemployment with this form or should
I disregard it? Thank you so much for
all your help and advice. Because of
you this process was pretty painless.
A 1. Hi Ms D, Great hearing from
you. I hope your feeling well. Yes, if
you were NOT approved for Social
Security disability, there is a dollar
limitation. You are able to work but
the ACTUAL amount that you can earn is
dependent on how much retirement
annuity you get. Remember as a FERS
annuitant, the second year the annuity
is recalculated. Ah...40G,think about
that. That sounds way too much to be a
CAP, most folks don't make that a year
NOT being disabled. I think it's more
like 14G per year, but you need to
check that out with OPM. Their number
is 1-888-767-6738.
As far as
unemployment, no....to be able to
receive unemployment, you must be
FULLY ABLE TO BE LOOKING FOR WORK, and
going this route is an accident
waiting to happen....don't file for
unemployment, it makes your retirement
"messy". So disregard that. One
additional reason, is you are being
paid "disability"money for those
months (or any months) that you are
asking for unemployment, again too
messy. And you are very welcome. I
hope you are healing and enjoying
retirement. Look, you are young and
you can work in a job, but make sure
you maintain the dollar limitation
that you can work. Take care, Roseanne
R 1. That makes perfect
sense...again Roseanne to the rescue.
Thank you so much, Ms. D.
Q 2.
If you have LWOP on your record, do
you have to make it up when you
retire. I have about 400 hours on my
record during my career, but never any
more than 100 hours in any one year,
thank you. ML
A. 2, In order
for LWOP without pay to have a
"negative" effect, you must have MORE
than 6 months of LWOP in a calendar
year. It appears that is not the case
with you, so you are OK. Roseanne
Q 3. Hi Roseanne, When my husband
turns 65 and is eligible for Medicare
Part A, and we keep our Federal Health
benefit plan (BCBS), is Medicare
primary and then BCBS picks up what
they (medicare) does not cover?
Thanks, M
A 3. Hi M, When
turning 65, as far as the coverage
with Medicare Part A, it becomes the
PRIMARY hospital coverage. Meaning
there would be nothing you are
responsible for the hospital. I
suspect if they were any additional
charges (and they say medicare A pays
ALL the hospital charges) BCBS would
pick up any other charges that the
hospital has billed perhaps such as
therapy, tests that may not be covered
by Medicare Part A. Your BCBS is your
medical insurance for doctor visits,
prescriptions etc....nothing changes
except that Medicare pays the hospital
bill...(again any charges that do not
fall under what medicare pays, BCBS
will). Roseanne
Q 4. Roseanne,
I have about 28 years of service
(3-30-1984) and am under FERS. Sept.
2010 I broke my hip and hurt two
vertebra in my back at work and was
back short days from Jan. - May 2011
off again because of nonunion in my
hip and pain that was not under
control enough to work again until
early fall 2011. I never was able to
work more that 4 hours a day and on
3-20-2-12 I had surgery to remove the
hardware that had been used to hold my
hip together. From the time I woke up
from this surgery the pain I had lived
with for 19 months was gone it was
like they took out a knife or razor
blade from my outer thigh. I am now
off and recovering slowly I just don't
seem to have any reserves, so I have
little strength. I'm am 62 and hearing
about a possible VER with monetary and
maybe even extra service years.
My
question to you is I won't know for
several months about my ability to
return full-time or if disability
retirement is what's best for me. I
was going to retire in Aug. 2013 so If
a VERA is offered and I took it and
then found disability retirement was
the better choice would I still have a
year to put in for disability
retirement? Thank you for your good
work here helping us with these
important life questions. K
A
4. Hi K, For you, a disability
retirement probably would be in your
best interest. What I suggest you do,
is to call HRSSC at 1-877-477-3273 and
ask for a early out printout and a
disability retirement printout. That
way you would see exactly the
difference in the monthly annuities.
The difference in the VERA retirement
(is if they offered money) VS a
disability retirement is considerably
different. Once you get the printouts
email and let me know what you think.
Let me be clear....you MUST be
proactive..don't wait until you are
out of sick leave or annual, because
if you decide to go the disability
route, it could take some time for OPM
to approve the medical documentation
you must provide. Additionally, as a
FERS employee, you are required to
file for social security disability as
well. Roseanne
Q 5.Hi Roseanne,
I am a USPS City Carrier close to
retirement. Thank you for taking the
time to answer my questions.
1)
On the lower right corner of the pay
stub, it says 'USPS Retirement' with a
dollar amount. Is this a lump sum
payout to me upon retirement? 2) On
pay stub, in the column next to
'Retire 8', what does the dollar
amount mean, where does it go, and
what is it for?
3) I am currently
63, and not collecting social security
because I am still working full time.
Is it better to delay collecting
social security until full retirement
age? I make $55,000-62,000 yearly. If
I collect social security, would much
of the benefit be taken away because
of my income? 4) I've heard that
people are waiting almost up to a year
to receive their first retirement
check. Is this true? Thank you for
your time and consideration. P
A 5.Hi P,
1. That USPS
retirement dollar amount is the amount
of money YOU put into the retirement
fund...those are YOUR contributions
only. Should you quit, get fired etc.,
and you decide to take that money out,
you could. No, that lump sum is NOT
paid out upon retirement. Since you
are a FERS employee, that amount is
fairly small and there is a "matching
contribution" paid by the post office
(that you don't see) to OPM.
2.
That 8 is a retirement code, that code
8 means you are a FERS employee. That
money is collected over the 26 pay
periods and then on PP 2, all of that
collected over the year money, is
added to the bottom figure. That is
why that figure only changes on PP 2.
Where it goes is to OPM where it sits
until retirement.
3. Yes, it it
better to delay the Social Security
UNTIL you retire. One of the reasons
is to NOT GET USED TO GETTING THE SS
check and then when you retire and see
how much your FERS annuity is
(remember that amount of money you are
asking me about...that is where your
annuity is funded. Now of course, that
money will deplete quickly. This is
why your annuity is based upon 1% of
your high 3 average salary, and not
how much you put in the fund. What you
put in the fund has no real bearing on
your annuity.
4.No that is not
really true. You will wait for several
months for a FULL retirement check,
but you receive INTERIM checks (until
the annuity is completed done...and
that takes a bit of time and that time
is dependent upon how "difficult" your
retirement is) which are about 70% of
the NET, not the gross, which is where
the confusion is when folks say I only
got half of what was on my annuity
statement.
I hope this has
helped clear up your issues. If you
have any more questions, please let me
know. Roseanne
Q. 6.
Roseanne-I'm eligible for retirement
on the 3rd of May. I have been Civil
Service since I started December 4,
1976. I have received my retirement
book to start the process, but the
figures show that I had no
contributions for five years, while I
was a rural carrier sub. I have my Pay
stubs from that time that shows
contributions being made. When I talk
to the people that are to help me, I
have gotten conflicting stories. One
tells me that FICA was taken out, but
my Social Security statements show
absolutely NO contributions. Where can
I go, or talk to to find out a more
realistic estimate of my annuity?
Thanks in advance.
A 6. The
easiest way is to find your pay stubs
for that period of time (when you were
a sub)...or go to your eOPF thru
liteblue and go to your form 50's from
those "sub" years and go to the top
and look to find where the retirement
code..let me know what the code is.
Roseanne
Till we
speak again....Roseanne |
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