Wants pension refund
To the Editor:
I was working a New York City job in the spring of 1976 when I was hired by my current NYS employer. I was advised there was a hiring freeze, so, my first day of work with the state was August 2, 1976. The freeze was imposed to shut new hires out of pension Tier 2.
Although I was allowed to buy back service credit for the time I worked for New York City, my request to go into Tier 2 was denied. So, I am one of those Tier 3 members who got to contribute 3 percent of my salary for 25 years.
After 25 years, the state decided its Tier 3 and Tier 4 employees should only have to contribute for 10 years. But for those of us who started in 1976, no refunds.
Now, I see attempts to submit legislation that would give us one month of service credit for every year contributed in excess of 10. However, most of us who contributed for so many years already have 30 years of service. So, the 15 months will only accrue benefits at the rate of 1.5 percent per year, instead of the 2 percent allowed for members of Tier 2.
I would prefer to have true tier equity. I would like to be able to retire at the same maximum rate as Tier 2 members after 37.5 years of service, instead of having to wait 40 years.
I keep hearing how PEF is trying to get the legislation described above enacted, but I would prefer PEF use other legislation already enacted — laws against stealing.
I don’t want 15 months of service credit. I want a refund. We don’t need new legislation. We need to test this issue in the courts: Does the state of New York have the right to arbitrarily create different classes of employees?
As a union, we have allowed the state to divide and conquer. We have sold out some of our members with various contracts and then had to later renegotiate to get those concessions back. We should heed Benjamin Franklin’s advice to the first Continental Congress, “We must all hang together or, assuredly, we shall all hang separately....”
DAVID ROBBINS
Coram
Get credit now for prior work
To the Editor:
I have been retired for more than a year and can see very clearly now the importance of obtaining before I retired all of the prior state service credit to which I was entitled.
Being on a fixed income, a retiree wants to be assured he or she is getting all the state service credit they are entitled to receive, because it directly affects the amount of their monthly pension check.
Thousands of PEF members have prior public service that could be added to their state service credits for retirement and thus increase their pension checks for the rest of their lives.
However, many members are not fully aware that some of their previous employment may qualify them for additional state service credit.
Also, attempting to secure information that may be 25 or 30 years old may be very difficult. So, the earlier this process is begun, the easier it will be.
Once these members have finalized their retirement, they can no longer obtain this precious credit and their pension checks will be permanently smaller because of their unintentional ignorance.
No state employee should retire without having a clear picture of exactly what parts of their employment history may qualify as prior service for credit toward their pension, and how to get it evaluated by the NYS Retirement System.
For example, I was able to secure credit in the state pension system before I retired for the time I worked for:
• the NY City Recreation Department;
• public schools in this state; and
• county government in this state.
I was able to secure a total of nearly three years additional service credit which translates into a 6 percent increase in my state pension check each month for the rest of my life.
I was also able to assist a former co-worker obtain six years additional credit for his service in New York City, and have him moved from Tier II to Tier I.
PATRICK McLAUGHLIN
MIDDLETOWN
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