By Reg Jones
Refund on buyback?
August 23rd, 2011 | Uncategorized
Q. Worked 33 years for the U.S. Postal Service under Civil Service Retirement System and four years in the Marine Corps. Back in the 1970s, I bought back my USMC time so I could draw both Social Security and civil service retirements as I worked two jobs. Now, with offset in place, I cannot draw Social Security due to USPS retirement. Can I get a refund for my buyback payment since I will never draw Social Security?
A. As a CSRS employee, there wouldn’t be an “offset” that would cancel any Social Security benefit to which you might be entitled. Instead, you’d be subject to the windfall elimination provision. The WEP reduces — but doesn’t eliminate — that Social Security benefit. As for getting a refund of the deposit you made for your active-duty service, you can’t unless you resign from the government before being eligible to retire and ask for a refund of all your retirement contributions.
Tags: CSRS, military buyback, Offset, RETIREMENT, SOCIAL SECURITY, USPS, WEP, windfall elimination provision
Annual leave
August 2nd, 2011 | Annual leave LEAVE
Q. After working 26 years for the Postal Service, I transferred to the Defense Department. Postal Service employees have a higher annual leave carryover limit than other federal sectors. I currently have 466 hours of annual leave and the max carryover for DoD is 240. Will I lose all annual leave hours in excess of 240 if not used by Dec. 31?
A: According to OPM, “The Postal Service Reorganization Act provides that an employee transferring between the USPS and other agencies may not lose benefits if the employee transfers without a break in service. The employee is entitled to carry over the higher leave ceiling that he or she had at the USPS. All 466 hours of annual leave will transfer to DoD and only the hours in excess of his or her USPS ceiling will be subject to use or lose.
“An employee transferring from USPS is entitled to the maximum carryover ceiling (personal leave ceiling) provided by USPS upon transfer to another agency. The employee is entitled to the higher carryover ceiling unless the employee’s annual leave balance is reduced at the end of the leave year. Any reduction in the annual leave balance at the end of the leave year will result in a lower personal leave ceiling, and the employee’s personal leave ceiling will be subject to change until it is reduced to the 240-hour ceiling provided in title 5 of the United States Code.
“In your example, the employee’s USPS leave ceiling will serve as the employee’s personal leave ceiling. So if the 466 hours of annual leave is within the employee’s USPS leave ceiling, that will be the employee’s personal leave ceiling as an employee of DoD. The employee’s personal leave ceiling will continue to reduce anytime the employee’s annual leave account has less than that amount at the end of the leave year. As long as the employee’s annual leave balance is under his USPS ceiling at the end of this leave year (December 31, 2011, for this leave year), that will be his or her new personal leave ceiling.’
Tags: leave carryover, USPS
The final word on work-year hours
April 15th, 2011 | Creditable service: CSRS CSRS annuity computation LEAVE RETIREMENT Sick leave
Q: I am a postal inspector under the Civil Service Retirement System. I plan on retiring with more than 2,500 hours of sick leave. The Office of Personnel Management shows a sick leave conversion chart rate based on 2,087 hours a year. The Postal Service human resources department uses a chart based on 2,080 a year. Upon retirement, does OPM accept the Postal Service conversion rate, or do they calculate based on their own conversion chart? Is there a reason the Postal Service uses a different conversion chart?
A: By law, a work year is 2,087 hours long. OPM will credit any unused sick leave using that number. If you have more than 2,087 hours of sick leave, go back to the beginning of the chart and start over.
Tags: CSRS, OPM, Postal Service, sick leave, sick leave at retirement, sick leave calculation, USPS, work year
Eligible for SRS after voluntary early retirement?
April 14th, 2011 | Creditable service: FERS DOWNSIZING Early retirement FERS annuity computation Reductions in force RETIREMENT Special retirement supplement
Q: I was recently offered voluntary early retirement from the U.S. Postal Service. I have 30 1/2 years of credible service, I am under the Federal Employees Retirement System, and I am 51 years old. I am also considered a reduction-in-force employee because our district office has been closed. Do I qualify for the special retirement supplement?
A: You would be eligible for the special retirement supplement when you reach your minimum retirement age, which is 56.
Tags: Post Office, reduction-in-force, RIF, special retirement supplement, SRS, USPS, VER, voluntary early retirement
Postal retiree and health insurance
February 24th, 2011 | RETIREMENT
Q: If I retired from the postal service but am still carrying the medical coverage through them. Is it necessary to elect the Part B coverage? I am not drawing Social Security because I am not eligible until I turn 66. I am under the Civil Service portion of the postal retiree plan and am still carrying my spouse on my medical coverage.
A: You don’t have to sign up for Medicare Part B if you don’t want to. It’s optional.
Tags: HEALTH INSURANCE, Medicare, USPS
Disability retirement and nonfederal re-employment
December 30th, 2010 | Disability retirement RETIREMENT
Q: I receive federal disability retirement from the U.S. Postal Service after 27 1/2 years of service. My disability was approved for anxiety and severe depression. During my postal career, I was a city letter carrier. I have an opportunity to take a job as a medical courier. Do you think this job will jeopardize my continuing to receive disability? The two jobs are a bit similar in nature, however the stress level of the new job would be far less. I do not want to jeopardize my disability in any way. There is no way I could ever return to the stress of the Postal Service with my mental conditions.
A: If you are under age 60 and accept a nonfederal position, your disability annuity would only be discontinued if your income from wages or self-employment was 80 percent or more of the current rate of base pay for the position you held when you went on disability retirement. If you accept a federal job, your salary will be reduced by by the amount of your disability annuity and will also be subject to the 80 percent limitation.
Tags: disability, Disability retirement, Post Office, U.S. Postal Service, USPS
What comes after max CSRS coverage?
December 22nd, 2010 | Creditable service: CSRS CSRS annuity computation RETIREMENT
Q: Where does money go after I have the maximum amount of time under the Civil Service Retirement System? I am still working at the U.S. Postal Service.
A: After a CSRS employee has 41 years and 11 months of service, he is entitled to the maximum amount of earned annuity, which is 80 percent. If he continues to work, contributions will still be deducted from his salary; at retirement, he can either receive a refund of those contributions or use the money to buy additional annuity which, like unused sick leave, isn’t subject to the 80 percent limit.
Tags: annuity, annuity calculation, Civil Service Retirement System, CSRS, max annuity, maximum annuity, maximum coverage, Postal Service, USPS
Health coverage in retirement for dual-fed couples
December 16th, 2010 | Coverage after retirement HEALTH INSURANCE
Q: There was an answer to a question that I would like clarification on. The writer, who was retired, said he and his wife were under his family health plan, but now they don’t need to cover their son, and he wants to switch to self-only coverage for both he and his wife (they are both retired federal employees). How is this possible? When you retire, you have to pick the self or family option, and your spouse also has to pick the self or family option. I assume the wife dropped her coverage in this case because you can’t be double-covered.
My question is this: Can I retire and opt out of insurance coverage, let my husband keep family coverage and cover me, and then when we no longer need family coverage (my son is 20 years old), can I pick my health benefits up again and have self-only, with my husband also having self-only?
I was under the impression that if you didn’t retire with your health insurance, then you could never pick it up again. How could they both switch to self-only then? My husband is going in as a rural carrier, I am retiring. I want him to take out the family insurance option because his percentage he pays will be way less then the percentage I will pay after I retire. I would love to retire with self-only, he could have the family option to cover my son, but I was told that’s not possible. I was told it’s best if I keep the family option when I retire, but I will be paying 75 percent as the ratio flip-flops after you retire.
A: You are correct that dual coverage isn’t permitted in the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. If a husband and wife are both federal employees, they have a choice: One of them can elect self and family coverage, or they may both elect self-only coverage. When they retire, they have the same options, and they can change their decision later if they so choose. For example, one of them can elect self and family coverage and the couple can later decide to have separate enrollments, or they can elect separate enrollments at retirement and later one of them can elect self and family coverage, with the spouse canceling the self-only enrollment.
I don’t understand your comment about the premiums flip-flopping after you retire. Unless the spouse carrying the enrollment is an employee of the U.S. Postal Service, he will pay the same percentage of the premiums when retired as when employed. Premiums paid by Postal Service employees are lower as a result of collective bargaining agreements. Postal Service retirees pay the same percentage of their premiums as all other retirees.
Tags: health care, HEALTH INSURANCE, health plans, Postal Service, retiree health care, USPS
Retroactive buyouts for USPS retirees
October 22nd, 2010 | Early retirement RETIREMENT
Q: According to the American Postal Workers Union, the grievance to give postal employees who took early out in 2008 and 2009 severance pay is now 15 months old. Is this going to happen? I voluntarily left, moved over for the next person, then in October 2009, they came out with the $15,000 buyout. I feel that postal employees who retired early really got the shaft.
A: No one who accepts an offer to retire early is eligible for severance pay. On the other hand, what you may be asking is whether the U.S. Postal Service is going to give a buyout payment to those employees who weren’t offered one when they retired in 2008 and 2009. To the best of my knowledge, there is no basis in law for them to do that.
Tags: Buyouts, Early retirement, Post Office, post office buyouts, severance, U.S. Postal Service, USPS
Tracking down life insurance benefits
October 21st, 2010 | Assignment of benefits Eligibility LIFE INSURANCE
Q: My brother retired from the U.S. Postal Service a few years ago. He passed away a few weeks ago, and his wife asked the San Antonio post office how she could apply for his insurance. She was told that he had no insurance. He specifically told me that he did: I retired from civil service and have insurance, and my brother said that he had the same sort of coverage. If he has a claim it would be a great aid to his widow.
A: His widow should call the Office of Personnel Management’s Retirement Information Office at 888-767-6738 and report his death. Make sure she has his retiree identification number at hand. It begins with the letters “CSA.” They will know whether she is entitled to a survivor annuity and a benefit from the Federal Employees’ Group Life Insurance program. They will also provide her with the paperwork needed to file her claim.
Tags: Federal Employees' Group Life Insurance, FEGLI, insurance claims, LIFE INSURANCE, Office of Personnel Management, OPM, Postal Service, U.S. Postal Service, USPS