By Attorney Robert R. McGill The golden days of yesteryear are gone. Time was, employment with the U.S. Postal Service was not merely another job, but a career that ensured job satisfaction, income security, and a sense of investment for the future. Then, technology and the promise of innovation arrived; “efficiency” was the word for […]
Republican Senators Richard Burr, (R-NC) and Tom Coburn (R-Oklahoma), on Thursday introduced a bill (S. 644) that would eliminate the pension portion of the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) for all new federal employees hired after 2012. The legislation would not affect Thrift Savings Plan benefits and agency-matching contributions. It also will not affect FERS […]
NEW TAX LAW SOCIAL SECURITY EMPLOYEE TAX RATE DECREASES FOR 2011 Thousands of postal employees will have their Social Security employee tax rate decrease 2 percent in 2011. The tax reduction is a result of the “Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010” signed into law Dec. 17, 2010. The Act […]
Article written exclusively for PostalReporter.com by Robert R. McGill,Esq. Whether you call it “Postal Disability Retirement”, “Federal Disability Retirement”, or “OPM Disability Retirement”, the available options under the National Reassessment Program all lead to the same road: the injured Postal Worker is being squeezed out of the workplace, and it is time to secure one’s […]
My name is Lennis B. Reynolds I am a retired Postal employee who took a VER/Incentive offer in August 2009. I am taking OPM to MSPB about the FERS Annuity Supplement. The difference without the Supplement is $1000.00 per month in retirement income. To : Honorable Howard J. Ansorge Administrative Judge Central Regional Office 230 […]
A new audit report from the Office Of Inspector General says that the USPS over-funded its FERS retirement obligations by $6.8 billion. The OIG reported several months ago that USPS overfunded its CSRS retirement obligations by $75 billion. Excerpts: Consistent with other retiree benefit obligations, the Postal Service is being unfairly burdened for its share […]
In recent VERAs the Postal Service issued FERS annuity estimates that omitted the employee’s FERS annuity supplement. The FERS annuity supplement is often nearly equal the basic annuity amount. Was that to discourage early retirements so they can justify weakening the no-layoff clause in upcoming contract negotiations? The method of calculating the FERS annuity supplement […]
Former Alaska Senator Ted Stevens was a longtime advocate for federal employees. Stevens played a key role in the creation of the Thrift Savings Plan, a 401(k)-type retirement savings program. He also was one of the original sponsors of the 1993 Family Medical Leave Act, which provides 12 weeks of unpaid leave. A moderate Republican, […]
by Attorney Robert R. McGill As with most things in life, attempting to secure a Federal Disability Retirement annuity under FERS or CSRS requires an extraordinary amount of time, effort, planning, and the collection, formulation and coordination of a compendium of information. Multiple questions arise at the early stages of planning: Can I live on […]
It came as no surprise to me that few postal employees accepted the latest voluntary early retirement offer, especially those under the new retirement system, FERS. The annuity estimates given to FERS eligibles between minimum retirement age (MRA) and age 62 omitted their FERS Special Retirement Supplement. It was a substantial amount to leave out–$1,000 […]