I had a coworker laid off a couple weeks ago and he had 3 weeks until he locked in rule of 75. HR refused to extend his termination date 3 weeks to let him retire.
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Get an attorney.
Poor suffering ba----d.
Does fidelity know the MR of 75 so if I call them they can confirm the dates and pension jump ? I hit mine in Nov and I wanna confirm. I know calling our HR is useless.
"I had a coworker laid off a couple weeks ago and he had 3 weeks until he locked in rule of 75. HR refused to extend his termination date 3 weeks to let him retire."
If he's not off payroll yet, I would suggest him to apply for as many internal jobs via HR job site as possible. As long as he get an interview scheduled by a recruiting manager, the HR will automatically put him on leave of absence without pay for 30 days to complete the interview process. Make sure the hiring manager chane the status to "interview scheduled" via HR job site, otherwise HR won't extend the date. This is from my personal experience back in March this year.
I thought retirement healthcare benefits were largely eliminated
Not entirely. AT&T has a new Medicare Advantage plan that non-subsidized retirees can buy into. It features a $900 in or out of network max out of pocket, and a cap on prescriptions at $6500. The sky is the limit under traditional part D plans.
While not a good fit for many, subsidized and non-subsidized, for others, it could be the best fit, whether subsidized or non-subsidized. It presents another option.
https://retiree.uhc.com/att/coverage-and-benefits
Pensions are from a foregone era of business.
If you were fortunate enough to be with AT&T and/or the Bell Companies at the right time to qualify for one consider yourself extremely fortunate.
When I started with AT&T in the mid 1980's they still had the pension, and not too long after the 401k was introduced. Initially the 401k was more of an afterthought but now it's, unfortunately, the primary retirement vehicle for many.
Another point to consider is that many employers don't even offer a 401k and people have to set up their own Investment Retirement Accounts.
Not all contracts are the same.
The SE-D3 Core (old Bellsouth territory) unfortunately the occupational pension doesn’t increase when one reaches modified rule of 75. I know because I just reached it but it does allow one to take a lump sum and retire from that point forward. Medical is also still available for occupational retiree’s, at least for now.
The pension is terrible post 1999 change, pre-99 pension amount was at least double, 401k match doesn’t even come close to matching the difference. For occupational the 401k company match adds up to about a total of $2k @ yr. and that’s if one maxes it out, it’s better than nothing but not much. Combined neither adds up to much because the company stopped matching yearly raise amount about 4 contracts ago in the pension, it’s capped at 1% per year. For new hires, they don’t get a pension at all.
Occupational has gone backwards on a lot of benefits and raises over the last several contracts, CWA has given back too much, medical premium's, bigger deductibles, RX rates, out of pocket, durable medical equipment, etc.. pensions greatly reduced, yearly bonuses reduced or nonexistent, etc.. all while the failed company officers have not only not lost anything but continue to get huge bonuses and raises.
Typical Machiavellian move from those soulless vassals.
Newsflash! When SBC (Now Stank T&T) bought up Ameritech, Pac Bell, Bell South, the other AT&T, SNET, etc, many employees kept legacy “modified rule of 75” Pensions. Most Cingular folks like me lost their subsidized medical benefits. But some folks have huge Pension perks, adding up to thousands of dollars more. So these whiners all har good cause to moan.
When talking pensions we need to post what region we are discussing. Maybe not all regions are impacted by MR75, in the SW (SBC) there’s a huge difference. When you look at calculations before MR75 it’s an annuity, no option for lump sum. After MR75 big jump in payout and lump sum is available.
We all need to quit spreading falsities regarding pensions and know the facts before we post on this site.
If you started in Pac bell, Southwest or Ameritech your pension almost doubles on the day you hit modified 75. Mine went up $300k on my 55th birthday. So yes it does matter for some people depending on where you started.
"..d-mb fcs why don't you get there is a big pension increase at MR75, it means a ton to a lot of us..."
Not TRUE... it all depends on how your pension was set up.
Legacy T, S won't get much of an increase when meeting MR75. Each individual needs to check fidelity and use the pension calculator to show you if you will get an increase.
I left last year due to the pension hit and I was going to meet MR75 in April of 2024.... I would actually be down 85k if I stayed. No significant increase until I get to 65, which is over 14 years away.
It does not matter since the company no longer provides retiree's with anything of value. That 30% off wireless service can be beat no problem. Home internet is competitive these days. And of course there is no help on medical insurance. All pension and 401 money is his.
If this was surprising to you or your coworker, have you been asleep or just WFH?
So TLOA is not for everyone? Union gets TLOA.
d-mb fcs why don't you get there is a big pension increase at MR75, it means a ton to a lot of us.
If your Management, MR75 meant nothing anyways. Tell your coworkers no worries about that.
Congratulations to your coworker!
Smart move by T! Most of those within ten years of Rule of 75 eligibility are longterm deadweight and should have been shown the door years ago.
Yes ...it actually makes a huge difference in your pension. Go look at the calculations before and after that MR75 date. If you have a pension do yourself a favor and get educated a bit. You're missing out on a cr-p ton if you don't get to hit MR75.
Man that’s terrible. I’ve heard more and more of these stories in the past year for sure. It’s very common. That being said, keep in mind anyone that has came into this company since 2014 doesn’t get a pension. That’s a double edge sword for the company as those of us without that pension aren’t stuck here. Something the bosses at the top need to think about. You need to treat folks better and how you treat your senior employees says a lot about you.
The rule of 75 no longer means anything, so this has no impact.
"MR75 allowed me to pick a gift,.. a pretty nice one"
Sounds like a generous retirement option for employees. Company honors its employee's loyalty and rewards them accordingly. That is a great thing.
MR75 allowed me to pick a gift,.. a pretty nice one….let’s me keep a 40% discount on my wireless vs my current 50% but it is better than nothing.
Medical insurance price was close to $800 per month and no longer subsidized however, the vision, dental and other ancillary benefits are very cost effective. Mine were around $50 per month.
Also, have the ability to get discounts on fiber, internet and AT&T perks. When a person does turn 65 you have the option to utilize the subsidized AT&T plans via United for Medicare, etc.
Pension amount did not change for me, and I can take it as an annuity, lump sum, or let it ride ‘as~is’ since its growth is based upon the annual interest rate posted in November. Can be moved as well.
Actually rule if 75 is still a big deal. U no longer get retirement medical subsidies but ur lump sum pension jumps way up. I thought u could buy time towards rule of 75 if ur within 2 years and get surplused.
That isn't a big deal. You miss out on your retirement gift and party and not much else if anything
Most employees don't get a "rule-of-75" so coming here for sympathy is a bad plan.
What exactly will the rule of 75 allow you to benefit from after retirement from AT&T?
I thought retirement healthcare benefits were largely eliminated and pensions were frozen years ago.
They can do that?
Get use to it. I’d seen it almost a dozen times. We keep butt kissers and yes men.
Doesn’t really matter. Rule of 75 is useless now anyway.
Sadly, they don’t EVEN care!
Sue