Health
& We
lfare
and Pension Funds
of Philadelphia and Vicinity
|
|
|
PREAMBLE The Trust Fund of the Pension Plan is administered by the Trustees. The Trustees are authorized to and intend to use the services of professional investment managers in accordance with the provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 for the investment of the assets of the Pension Trust. The Plan maintains a fiscal year ending December 31 and hours worked for determining credited service are based on a calendar year. Claims for benefits under the Plan should be presented to the Plan Administrator at the office of the Plan, Fourth and Cherry Streets, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Trustees of the Plan have adopted an appeals procedure under which a participant or beneficiary may seek redress of a claim which has been denied in whole or in part. The Plan is a multiemployer defined benefit plan within the meaning of ERISA. Your pension benefits under this multiemployer plan are insured by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), a federal insurance agency. A multiemployer plan is a collectively bargained pension arrangement involving two or more unrelated employers, usually in a common industry. Under the multiemployer plan program, the PBGC provides financial assistance through loans to plans that are insolvent. A multiemployer plan is considered insolvent if the plan is unable to pay benefits (at least equal to the PBGC's guaranteed benefit limit) when due. The maximum benefit that the PBGC guarantees is set by law. Under the multiemployer program, the PBGC guaranty equals a participant's years of service multiplied by (1) 100% of the first $5 of the monthly benefit accrual rate and (2) 75% of the next $15. The PBGC's maximum guaranty limit is $16.25 per month times a participant's years of service. For example, the maximum annual guaranty for a retiree with 30 years of service will be $5,850. The PBGC guaranty generally covers: (1) normal and early retirement benefits; (2) disability benefits if you become disabled before the plan becomes insolvent; and (3) certain benefits for your survivors. The PBGC guaranty generally does not cover: (1) benefits greater than the maximum guaranteed amount set by law; (2) benefit increases and new benefits based on plan provisions that have been in place for fewer than five years at the earlier of: (i) the date the plan terminates or (ii) the date the plan becomes insolvent; (3) benefits that you are not vested because you have not worked long enough; (4) benefits for which you have not met all of the requirements at the time the plan becomes insolvent; and (5) non-pension benefits, such as health insurance, life insurance, certain death benefits, vacation pay, and severance pay. For more information about the PBGC and the benefits it guarantees, ask your Plan Administrator or contact the PBGC's Technical Assistance Division, 1200 K Street, N.W., Suite930, Washington, D.C. 20005-4026, or call 202-326-4000 (not a toll-free number). TTY/TTD users may call the Federal Relay Service toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4000. Additional information about the PBGC's pension insurance program is available through the PBGC's web site on the Internet at http://www.PBGC.gov.
|
|
