Nearing retirement? Congratulations! You’ve worked a long time to reach this day. Before it happens, there are many things to attend to.
- Communicate with MSRS about your pension benefits. Only they can answer detailed questions pertaining to your benefits. Attending one of their retirement presentations will also provide you with many good ideas. Here are some that I find interesting.
- Retirees should have at least 10 things to do a week.
- Cost of health insurance for 65: $95,000 to $165,000
- If alive at age 65, 50% chance of living to age 90; 25% chance of living to age 98.
- Depending on what commodity, inflation over twenty years may be between 27-104%.
- Five-year return after greatest market depression have produced the greatest increases.
- Plan a retirement budget. Consider inflation and outlier cost increases (health insurance, property taxes, long-term care)
- Research your SSI projected benefits.
- Communicate with SEGIP if you plan to continue your current insurances through the state group insurance plan. There is a very strict window of opportunity to do this.
- Vacation accrual payout is limited to 260 hours. Do not expect the whole payout to increase your “high five.” If you have more hours than 260 on the books on the day you retire, either use them before you retire or risk losing them. Payout with more than 20 years’ service will go to the employee Health Care Savings Plan (HCSP). Employees with less than 20 years’ service will have 75% of the leave to be paid out paid to the HCSP and 25% paid out in cash.
- Severance is a term used for the payout of 35% of your sick leave balance. An employee is only eligible for severance if they have enough years of service to qualify for a pension or if laid off. Depending on your years of service, either 100% of the severance (which is limited to 35% of your unused sick leave) either 100% goes into a Health Care Savings Plan (HCSP) for the employee if you have 20 years’ service or more. If you have 10 years’ service or more, 50% goes to the HCSP and 50% is paid out in cash. The remaining 65% of unused sick leave remains with the employer. If the employee returns to work for the employer, the remaining balance shall be available for use. Other than via severance, sick leave is a “use it or lose it “benefit.
- Consider Post Retirement Option (PRO) for some part-time employment with your employer. Like other employers, the state is finding it hard to find enough employees to get all the work done.
- Communicate to MGEC your date of retirement and personal contact information (phone and email) for future communication and event opportunities. Email mgec@mgec.org