Posted:
August 1, 2013
The following notice from American Maritime Officers Plans is being sent via U.S. Mail this week to AMO Plans participants.
Please take note of the following changes being made to the American Maritime Officers (AMO) Pension Plan and Medical Plan, which will be effective October 1, 2013.
American Maritime Officers Pension Plan
The following changes to the rules are intended to protect the active AMO members serving in covered employment. The rules only apply to a limited number of people who DO NOT RETIRE and choose to leave covered employment to work elsewhere in maritime employment or who leave the industry altogether without retiring, and to pensioners who return to work in the maritime industry without permission.
After an extended absence from covered employment, an individual will no longer be able to re-establish eligibility for a non-reduced pension by simply working a single day of covered employment.
Additionally, a pensioner must now receive permission to return to work in any position with an employer in the maritime industry.
Establishment of Eligibility for Pensioner Medical Benefits
The following changes to the rules are intended to protect the active AMO members serving in covered employment. The rules only apply to a limited number of people that DO NOT RETIRE and choose to leave covered employment to work elsewhere in maritime employment or leave the industry altogether without retiring. After an extended absence from covered employment, an individual will no longer be able to establish eligibility for retiree medical benefits by simply working 30 days of covered employment and then retiring.
A Former Participant under the Medical Plan is an individual who has not completed at least one day of covered employment within a 365 day period, or is an active employee whose eligibility for benefits terminated because he or she went to work in non-covered employment in any capacity with an employer in the maritime industry.
For a Former Participant who retires under the AMO Pension Plan with an effective date on or after October 1, 2013, or who declares retirement effective on or after October 1, 2013 if he or she was an In Service Lump Sum recipient, in order to establish eligibility for pensioner medical benefits under the Plan, the Former Participant must be otherwise eligible and must return to AMO and complete at least 200 days of covered employment during the calendar year including or immediately preceding the effective date of pension, and complete one year of at least 200 days of covered employment for each additional year he or she was gone from AMO (up to a maximum of five years).
American Maritime Officers Pension Plan
This rule change for the pension plan is intended to protect those active AMO members who were in the process of repairing a break in service and had vested at the time of the freezing of the Plan.
In order for an employee receiving Deep Sea or Great Lakes benefits to repair a break in service so that pension credit that was lost due to the break can be restored, the employee must earn at least ten years of pension credit subsequent to the break in service by no later than December 31, 2015. In addition, at least five of the subsequent years of pension credit must have been earned as of December 31, 2009.
Please contact the Plan Office if you should have any questions.
AMO Plans: notice regarding upcoming rules changes for AMO Pension and Medical Plans
The following notice from American Maritime Officers Plans is being sent via U.S. Mail this week to AMO Plans participants.
Please take note of the following changes being made to the American Maritime Officers (AMO) Pension Plan and Medical Plan, which will be effective October 1, 2013.
American Maritime Officers Pension Plan
The following changes to the rules are intended to protect the active AMO members serving in covered employment. The rules only apply to a limited number of people who DO NOT RETIRE and choose to leave covered employment to work elsewhere in maritime employment or who leave the industry altogether without retiring, and to pensioners who return to work in the maritime industry without permission.
After an extended absence from covered employment, an individual will no longer be able to re-establish eligibility for a non-reduced pension by simply working a single day of covered employment.
Additionally, a pensioner must now receive permission to return to work in any position with an employer in the maritime industry.
- An Inactive Vested Participant under the Pension Plan is an individual who has vested rights to a pension but has not worked in AMO covered employment in over a year. Specifically, an individual is determined to be an Inactive Vested Participant once he or she has not worked in covered employment for at least one day within the 365-day period prior to his or her Pension Effective Date.
In addition, a vested active employee who goes to work in non-covered employment in any capacity with an employer in the maritime industry is at that point determined to be an Inactive Vested Participant.
Once an individual has been determined to be an Inactive Vested Participant, in order for him or her to be eligible to receive an unreduced regular pension regardless of age after attaining 20 years of service credit at retirement, he or she must work 200 days of AMO covered employment during the calendar year including or immediately preceding the effective date of pension, and complete one year of at least 200 days of covered employment for each additional year he or she was gone from AMO (up to a maximum of five years).
- Any pensioner who returns to non-covered employment in any capacity with an employer in the maritime industry without written permission from the Trustees will be subject to the following penalties:
i. If the pensioner has not yet attained normal retirement age, he or she will not be entitled to pension benefits for any month during which he or she was so employed and for six additional months, provided that such suspension shall not extend beyond normal retirement age; and
ii. The pensioner will forfeit all eligibility for benefits under the Medical Plan, regardless of whether he or she has attained normal retirement age.
Establishment of Eligibility for Pensioner Medical Benefits
The following changes to the rules are intended to protect the active AMO members serving in covered employment. The rules only apply to a limited number of people that DO NOT RETIRE and choose to leave covered employment to work elsewhere in maritime employment or leave the industry altogether without retiring. After an extended absence from covered employment, an individual will no longer be able to establish eligibility for retiree medical benefits by simply working 30 days of covered employment and then retiring.
A Former Participant under the Medical Plan is an individual who has not completed at least one day of covered employment within a 365 day period, or is an active employee whose eligibility for benefits terminated because he or she went to work in non-covered employment in any capacity with an employer in the maritime industry.
For a Former Participant who retires under the AMO Pension Plan with an effective date on or after October 1, 2013, or who declares retirement effective on or after October 1, 2013 if he or she was an In Service Lump Sum recipient, in order to establish eligibility for pensioner medical benefits under the Plan, the Former Participant must be otherwise eligible and must return to AMO and complete at least 200 days of covered employment during the calendar year including or immediately preceding the effective date of pension, and complete one year of at least 200 days of covered employment for each additional year he or she was gone from AMO (up to a maximum of five years).
American Maritime Officers Pension Plan
This rule change for the pension plan is intended to protect those active AMO members who were in the process of repairing a break in service and had vested at the time of the freezing of the Plan.
In order for an employee receiving Deep Sea or Great Lakes benefits to repair a break in service so that pension credit that was lost due to the break can be restored, the employee must earn at least ten years of pension credit subsequent to the break in service by no later than December 31, 2015. In addition, at least five of the subsequent years of pension credit must have been earned as of December 31, 2009.
Please contact the Plan Office if you should have any questions.