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Thinking of
Retirement?
(PEITF Newsletter
Article by Michel Plamondon
April 2008)
If you are thinking
of retiring this year, you should indicate your intention to your
employer by March 31.
You may retire with
an unreduced pension if you meet one of the following criteria:
-
You have
completed 35 years of pensionable service;
-
You have
completed 30 years of pensionable service and you are at least 55
years of age;
-
You have
completed 5 years of pensionable service and you are at least 60
years of age.
You may also retire
with a reduced pension (penalty) if you are between 55 and 60 years of
age and you have at least 5 years of pensionable service.
There is also a
provision for disability pension. To qualify, you must have completed
five or more years of pensionable service and be totally and
permanently disabled. The definition of disability is as follows:
"totally and
permanently disabled" means, in relation to an individual, suffering
from a physical or mental impairment that prevents the individual from
engaging in any employment for which the individual is reasonably
suited by virtue of the individual’s education, training or
experience, and that can reasonably be expected to last for the
remainder of the individual’s practical working life.
If you have
completed 35 years of pensionable service, you can retire at any age
without a reduction. However, I do not believe that there are many
teachers presently in the system who will have 35 years of pensionable
service before reaching the age of 55. You would have had to start
teaching before your 20th birthday to qualify.
Some teachers are
under the misconception that you can retire if your age and service
add up to 85. That is not the case. For example, if you are 53 years
of age and you have 32 years of pensionable service, your age plus
service add up to 85 but you still cannot access your pension. You
must meet both criteria of having 30 years of pensionable service and
being 55 years of age.
If you have not
completed 30 years of pensionable service and wish to retire between
the ages of 55 and 60, there will be a penalty which is 1/4% a month
for every month prior to age 60 or every month prior to 30 years of
service, whichever is the lesser. In any case, the maximum penalty is
15%.
I am often asked the question "When can I retire with a full pension?"
The term full pension goes back to the days when the maximum years of
pensionable service that you could accumulate was 35 years. That
barrier has been removed and there is no longer a limit to the number
of pensionable years that you can accumulate. Since there is no
mandatory retirement age, you could teach 50 years and receive a 100%
pension. However, I do not see a big line-up of teachers wanting to
stay beyond 35 years.
If you are thinking of
retiring and have not attended a pre-retirement seminar, you should
really consider doing so. The seminar provides teachers with a lot of
valuable information. If you have any inquiries regarding pension,
contact Michel Plamondon at PEITF. If you require a pension estimate
or wish to buy back time, contact Ann Louise Desroches at 620-3216 or
aldesroches@gov.pe.ca.
If you are going to
retire this year, enjoy your retirement. |
