What is this Early Retirement Benefit the District Wants to Take Away?
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What is this Early Retirement Benefit the District Wants to Take Away?

The District has made it clear it wants to eliminate the negotiated Early Retirement Benefit for current employees, not those who are already retired and receiving the benefit.

Years ago USEP negotiated the early retirement benefit to help reduce the penalty FRS imposes for employees who have not reached age 62 or who have 30 years in FRS. At 62, if an employee is vested, it doesn’t matter how many years of FRS service one has, so no early retirement benefit is needed.

The goal was to honor an employee’s longevity and service to Pasco by reducing the penalty. The District benefited by replacing the higher-paid employee with a new hire who earns considerably less.

If an employee has less than 30 years in FRS and is not 62, the FRS imposes a 5% penalty for every year the employee is short of 62, regardless of their years of service.

The early retirement benefit USEP negotiated helps make up the penalty as long as the employee has 20 years in Pasco, at least 25 years in FRS, and is at least 50 years of age.

See the chart below.

Employee Age FRS Penalty District Offset Final Penalty to Employee

50

60% 35% 25%

51

55% 35%

20%

52

50% 35%

15%

53

45% 35%

10%

54

40% 35%

5%

55

35% 35%

0%

56

30% 30%

0%

57

25% 25%

0%

58

20% 20%

0%

59

15% 15%

0%

60

10% 10%

0%

61

5% 5%

0%

62 0% 0%

0%

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If you are an employee of Pasco County Schools and not already a member of USEP, consider joining today! Members are eligible for a wide range of benefits through our affiliates and benefit partners. USEP also provides members with professional development opportunities and representation for member issues.