Eligibility

When you retire, you are eligible for a Regular Pension if:

1.   You are at least age 65; and

2.   You have attained Vested status; and

3.   You have worked at least 700 hours in Covered Employment since January 1, 1959.

Amount

The monthly amount of the Regular Pension effective on and after July 1, 2003, depends on:

·       Whether you incurred a Separation from Covered Employment;

·       The number of Benefit Units earned before February 1, 1980;

·       The amount payable for each Benefit Unit earned for Covered Employment before February 1, 1980;

·       The amount of eligible contributions made or required to be made, within a Plan Credit Year, for work in Covered Employment on and after February 1, 1980;

·       The percentage crediting factor applied to the amount of eligible contributions; and

·       The amount of any supplemental benefit.

If there has been no Separation from Covered Employment, the monthly pension which is payable for a pension effective on and after July 1, 2003, is the sum of:

·       $25.75 for each Benefit Unit (or a portion for fractions) earned before February 1, 1959 if applicable, plus

·       $50.00 for each Benefit Unit (or a portion for fractions) earned on and after February 1, 1959, and before February 1, 1980, if applicable, plus

·       4.00% of contributions made or required to be made for work performed in Covered Employment on and after February 1, 1980, and before July 1, 2003, provided you work a minimum of 300 hours within a Plan Credit Year, plus

·       4.00% of the first $3.20 per hour in contributions made or required to be made for work performed in Covered Employment after June 30, 2003, and before February 1, 2004, provided you work a minimum of 300 hours within a Plan Credit Year, plus

·       2.00% of the first $3.20 per hour in contributions made or required to be made for work performed in Covered Employment on and after February 1, 2004, and before July 1, 2004, provided you work a minimum of 300 hours within a Plan Credit Year, plus

·       2.00% of the first $3.25 per hour in contributions made or required to be made for work performed in Covered Employment after June 30, 2004, and before July 1, 2005, provided you work a minimum of 300 hours within a Plan Credit Year, plus

·       2.00% of the first $3.20 per hour in contributions made or required to be made for work performed in Covered Employment after June 30, 2005, provided you work a minimum of 300 hours within a Plan Credit Year, plus

·       any supplemental benefit.

If there has been a Separation from Covered Employment:

·       The pension amounts outlined in the preceding section are for service after the most recent Separation from Covered Employment; and

·       If there is Credited Service prior to a Separation from Covered Employment, not counting any Credited Service lost due to a Permanent Break in Service, the pension amount remains the accrued benefit at the time of the Separation from Covered Employment.

Eligibility

When you retire, you are eligible for an Early Retirement Pension if:

1.     You are at least age 55, but not yet age 65; and

2.     You have earned at least 10 Years of Credited Service, not counting any Credited Service earned as a result of work in Continuous Non-Covered Employment or Credited Service lost due to a Permanent Break in Service; and

3.     You have worked at least 700 hours in Covered Employment since January 1, 1959.

Amount

The monthly amount of an Early Retirement Pension is determined as follows:

·       Calculate the amount of the Regular Pension you would receive if you were age 65 when your pension starts; and

·       Reduce that amount by ¹/₂ of 1% for each month you are younger than age 65.

The amount of the Early Retirement Pension is reduced from the amount of the Regular Pension because you are younger than age 65 when your pension payments begin, and you will receive benefits for a longer period of time.

Eligibility

You may be qualified for a Disability Pension if:

1.     You are not yet age 65; and

2.     You have earned at least 10 Years of Credited Service, not counting any Credited Service earned as a result of work in Continuous Non-Covered Employment or Credited Service lost due to a Permanent Break in Service; and

3.     You have, as a result of actual work in Covered Employment, earned at least one quarter of Credited Service in the 2 consecutive Plan Credit Years prior to or during the Plan Credit Year in which disability began. Disability Hour Credit will not be counted to satisfy this requirement.

Amount

The monthly amount of a Disability Pension effective on and after September 1, 1997, is $50.00 for each Benefit Unit (plus a portion for fractions) up to a maximum based on the 30 Benefit Units earned most recently, however, a Disability Pension amount will never be less than 60% of a Regular Pension (an Early Retirement amount at age 55).

A Disability Pension is payable for as long as the Pensioner remains totally disabled.

No Longer Receiving Social Security Disability Benefits or Recovery from Disability

 If you are a disability Pensioner younger than age 65 and you are no longer eligible for a Social Security Disability Benefit (or its equivalent), or you recover from your disability, you must notify the Trust Fund Office within 21 days after the date you receive notice from the Social Security Administration (or its equivalent) of your loss of eligibility, or your recovery, in order to avoid any loss of benefits when you retire again.

Once a disability Pensioner reaches age 65, his pension will continue for the rest of his life, as long as he remains retired, even if he recovers from his disability.

For complete information , CONTINUE READING.  

Eligibility

When you retire, you are eligible for a Service Pension if:

1.     You are at least 55 years of age, but you are younger than age 65; and

2.     You have at least 25 Benefit Units (not counting any Benefit Units lost due to a Permanent Break in Service), or

3.     You are at least age 62, and you have at least 20 Benefit Units (not counting any Benefit Units lost due to a Permanent Break in Service); and

4.     You have worked at least 700 hours in Covered Employment since January 1, 1959; and

5.     You have not previously received an Early Retirement Pension from the Fund prior to February 1, 1971.

You may not qualify for a Service Pension if you are eligible for a Partial or Pro Rata Pension.

Amount

The monthly amount of the Service Pension is determined in the same way as the Regular Pension except you need a minimum of 25 Benefit Units at age 55, or 20 Benefit Units at age 62, not counting any Benefit Units lost due to a Permanent Break in Service.

Eligibility

If you leave Covered Employment after having attained Vested status, you will be eligible for a Deferred Vested Pension at age 65. You could begin receiving a Deferred Vested Pension before age 65 if you meet the age and service requirements for an Early Retirement or Service Pension.

When you retire, you are eligible for a Deferred Vested Pension if:

1.     You have attained Vested status; and

2.     You are at least age 65; or

3.     You are at least age 55, but not yet age 65, and have met the requirements for an Early Retirement Pension or a Service Pension; and

4.     You have worked at least 700 hours in Covered Employment since January 1, 1959.

Amount

A Deferred Vested Pension is calculated the same way as the Regular, Early Retirement or Service Pension depending on your accrued benefit and age when your pension begins. The amount of a Deferred Vested Pension will be “frozen” at the level payable by the Plan at the time of your Separation from Covered Employment, but that amount will not be less than $19 for each Benefit Unit earned prior to February 1, 1980.

If you have worked under the Northern California Cement Masons Pension Plan and any of the Related Plans recognized by the Board, you may have employment divided among Related Plans. If there is a division of employment, you may not qualify for a pension, or your pension may be less because your employment has been divided between this Plan and one of the recognized Related Plans. A Pro Rata Pension allows the Plan to take your service under a Related Plan into account to determine whether you qualify for a pension.

The list of the current Related Plans includes:

·       Arizona Basic Crafts Pension Trust Fund

·       Operative Plasterers & Cement Masons’ International Association

·       Local Union 394 Pension Trust Fund

·       Cement Masons of Southern California Pension Trust

·       Cement Masons Pension Trust for Northern Nevada

·       San Diego County Cement Masons Pension Trust

The above Related Plans have adopted a similar provision for a Pro Rata Pension in which the years of Credited Service earned under this Pension Plan can be used toward eligibility for a Pro Rata Pension from those Plans. If you have earned Credited Service under any of the above-referenced Plans, you should contact the Northern California Cement Masons Pension Trust Fund Office and the Related Plan(s) and let them know about your work under any of the Related Plan(s).

If you have worked in jurisdictions other than those listed above, you should contact the Trust Fund Office for more information. The hours worked in other jurisdictions may affect your monthly pension benefit.

Eligibility

When you retire, you are eligible for a Pro Rata Pension if you meet the following requirements:

1.     Your Combined Credited Service among all Related Plans (not counting Continuous Non-Covered Employment or Credited Service lost due to a Permanent Break in Service) is treated as Northern California Credited Service sufficient to qualify you for any type of pension under the Plan with the exception of a Service Pension; and

2.     You have at least 700 hours on or after January 1, 1959, for which contributions are required to be made to this or a Related Plan under a collective bargaining agreement.

3.     Related Hours will be considered in determining whether you have incurred a Break in Service or a Separation from Covered Employment. However, once you stop working for employers who contribute to this Plan or a Related Plan, the determination as to whether you have incurred a Permanent Break in Service will be based only on your Northern California Credited Service, not on your Combined Credited Service.

Amount

A Pro Rata Pension is calculated the same way as the Regular, Early Retirement, Disability or Deferred Vested Pension.

Only Northern California Benefit Units and Contributions apply in determining the amount of a Pro Rata Pension under this Plan. Recognized Related Plans may also pay Pro Rata Pensions based on the Rules and Regulations governing each of those plans.  You should always contact any other Plan under which you have earned Credited Service so that you may determine what your total pension will be among the various Plans under which you have accumulated Credited Service, not counting any Credited Service lost due to a Permanent Break in Service.

You may be entitled to a Partial Pension if you do not have enough service credit because your employment is divided among various cement masons pension plans, or your pension amount may be less than the full amount because of a division of employment.

Several cement masons pension plans are participating Related Plans however, not all. If you are working under a Plan that is not participating, you will not be able to use service credit for a Partial Pension. Contact the Northern California Cement Masons Pension Trust Fund Office and tell them where else you have worked or want to work to see if the Plan is related.

When your employment is divided among various cement masons pension plans, you should keep records such as check stubs and pension summary statements from the plans. If you have service credit under another cement masons pension plan, you are encouraged to provide a copy of your annual pension summary statement to the Trust Fund Office each year so that your records may be up to date in anticipation of a future retirement.

Eligibility

When you retire, you may be eligible for a Partial Pension if,

1.     Without a Permanent Break in Service, your Combined Service Credit among participating Related Plans (not counting any service credit earned in Continuous Non-Covered Employment) would entitle you to any type of pension under this Plan with the exception of a Service Pension; and

2.     You have earned 2 years of service credit after January 1, 1955, under the jurisdiction of this Plan and 2 years of service credit under a Related Plan for which contributions were made; and

3.     You would be eligible for a Partial Pension from a Related Plan and your Terminal Plan. The Terminal Plan is the last Plan under which you immediately worked prior to your retirement.

Amount

The Partial Pension amount is based on the number of years of Northern California service credit earned after January 1, 1955, as a percentage of all Combined Service Credit. The benefit amount is determined as follows:

·       Using the benefit formula of the Plan, calculate a pension amount using the total of Combined Service Credit. (Related Plan formula for Disability Pension is limited to $50 per Benefit Unit.)

·       Divide the amount of service credit earned under this Plan since January 1, 1955, by the total of Combined Service Credit from all Related Plans, including this Plan, earned since January 1, 1955.

·       Multiply the pension amount arrived at in number 1 above by the fraction arrived at in number 2 above to determine the amount of pension payable by the Northern California Cement Masons Pension Plan.

In addition to your accrued pension benefit, the Board has approved payment of a supplemental benefit (Adjustment to Pension). This supplemental benefit is provided to Pensioners or Beneficiaries receiving a Regular, Early Retirement, Service or Disability Pension. For those Pensioners or Beneficiaries receiving a Pro Rata or Partial Pension, in order to be eligible for the supplemental benefit, the majority of Combined Credited Service must be Northern California Credited Service.

For the supplemental amount to which you may be entitled to receive, CONTINUE READING.  

If you have not yet retired, you are a Vested Participant who earned one or more hours after August 22, 1984, and you are married at the time you die, your surviving Spouse may be entitled to a Surviving Spouse Pension.

The pre-retirement Surviving Spouse Pension is only payable if:

·       You were married on the day you die; and

·       You have been married to that same person for at least one year prior to your death.

This provision does not apply to your surviving Spouse for any portion of your pension payable to a former Spouse under a Qualified Domestic Relations Order (QDRO).

The pre-retirement Surviving Spouse Pension will be paid as a standard 50% Joint-and-Survivor Pension regardless of whether you die before or after you reach your earliest retirement age. The pension amount will be determined as if you had left Covered Employment on the date of your death or the date you last worked in Covered Employment. If you die before the age of 55, payments to your surviving Spouse would not begin until the month following the month you would have reached age 55, had you lived.

For complete information, CONTINUE READING.