Not trying to be argumentative here, but how would you walk away from your pension? Unless you have not been there very long, you should be vested and the pension is yours if you leave the company. It may have been smaller than if you stayed but that's because the pension size accrues depending on how long you worked there.
Not trying to be argumentative here, but how would you walk away from your pension? Unless you have not been there very long, you should be vested and the pension is yours if you leave the company. It may have been smaller than if you stayed but that's because the pension size accrues depending on how long you worked there.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think what you mean is that you would have left a company that offers a pension, still been eligible to collect but benefits stop accruing, and went to work for a company that does not have a pension (as most don't).
Again, not trying to pick a fight but it's important people understand their rights. Companies cannot punitively take away a pension once you are vested.
Yes, correct. People walk away from their full pension if they had stayed and retired when they normally would have. People who walked away from a pension may have also walked away from benefits not guaranteed them (like lifetime medical coverage) unless they stayed until full retirement age or the full 20 years etc etc. So it isn’t the money they personally put in…..there’s a lot more to it depending on the company you had worked with. People I know walked away from large retirement packages, for example.
Good point, plans can be structured differently with varying milestones which it's why it's important people understand their pensions.
I took issue with the phrase "walked away from a pension" which I read to mean losing vested accruals (and by that I include company contributions, not just employee contributions if applicable). That almost certainly isn't the case. However you are exactly right that people may lose additional benefits if they don't reach a given milestone.
I was eligible to retire with 80% of my retirement and not the full amount. I had religious exemption in that did not approve or disapprove... instead they applied pressure to me instead. I chose to to take the 80% than deal with the stress. I worked for the military as a federal employee.
I'm not trying to be disrespectful to Barbara or criticize anyone put in this difficult position. I myself got a religious accommodation, reluctantly granted by my company after I made clear I understood my rights under the CRA of 1964. I also have a pension (fully vested) albeit not a large one. Believe me I looked into this in detail.
My main concern is that the people trying to scare us into compliance often start rumors like "lose your pension" to frighten people. They know that kind of talk is scary to people who worked for decades, and they count on people not knowing the facts. We combat this by knowing the truth better than those making the threats.
Not trying to be argumentative here, but how would you walk away from your pension? Unless you have not been there very long, you should be vested and the pension is yours if you leave the company. It may have been smaller than if you stayed but that's because the pension size accrues depending on how long you worked there.
Correct me if I'm wrong but I think what you mean is that you would have left a company that offers a pension, still been eligible to collect but benefits stop accruing, and went to work for a company that does not have a pension (as most don't).
Again, not trying to pick a fight but it's important people understand their rights. Companies cannot punitively take away a pension once you are vested.
Yes, correct. People walk away from their full pension if they had stayed and retired when they normally would have. People who walked away from a pension may have also walked away from benefits not guaranteed them (like lifetime medical coverage) unless they stayed until full retirement age or the full 20 years etc etc. So it isn’t the money they personally put in…..there’s a lot more to it depending on the company you had worked with. People I know walked away from large retirement packages, for example.
Good point, plans can be structured differently with varying milestones which it's why it's important people understand their pensions.
I took issue with the phrase "walked away from a pension" which I read to mean losing vested accruals (and by that I include company contributions, not just employee contributions if applicable). That almost certainly isn't the case. However you are exactly right that people may lose additional benefits if they don't reach a given milestone.
thank you for explaining that, you are correct
I was eligible to retire with 80% of my retirement and not the full amount. I had religious exemption in that did not approve or disapprove... instead they applied pressure to me instead. I chose to to take the 80% than deal with the stress. I worked for the military as a federal employee.
Good for you, sounds like you made a good choice.
I'm not trying to be disrespectful to Barbara or criticize anyone put in this difficult position. I myself got a religious accommodation, reluctantly granted by my company after I made clear I understood my rights under the CRA of 1964. I also have a pension (fully vested) albeit not a large one. Believe me I looked into this in detail.
My main concern is that the people trying to scare us into compliance often start rumors like "lose your pension" to frighten people. They know that kind of talk is scary to people who worked for decades, and they count on people not knowing the facts. We combat this by knowing the truth better than those making the threats.
This is so true JeffC. Thank you for trying to ensure people
understand.
I think thats what she was trying to say. She walked away from a bigger pension because she would not stay.