You may retire on an Early Retirement Pension if you are a Participant who has retired, reached age 55, and satisfied one of the following service requirements:

• 15 or more years of Pension Credit, including at least one year of Future Service Credit;
• 10 or more years of Pension Credit, including at least five years of Future Service Credit; or
• At least 10 Years of Service.

There are six types of Early Retirement Pensions available under the Plan.

• One type—the Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension—is not subsidized by the Plan, which means the monthly amount of your pension is reduced to the actuarial equivalent of your Normal Retirement Pension. This means it is calculated to take into account that you will be receiving your monthly pension benefit over a longer period of time than if it had started at age 65.
• The other five types are subsidized by the Plan, which means the monthly amount by which your pension is reduced is less than the actuarial equivalent of your Normal Retirement Pension. A subsidized form of Early Retirement Pension is expected to pay you more over your lifetime than an unsubsidized form.

Although only one form of Early Retirement Pension is currently unsubsidized, your actual early retirement benefit could consist of portions that are subsidized and portions that are not. Whether or not your Early Retirement Pension consists of more than one type of Early Retirement Pension depends on whether the work you perform in Covered Employment falls under the terms of the First Alternative, Second Alternative, or Default provisions specified in the Funding Improvement Plan. If you are eligible for several Early Retirement Pensions, your final amount will be determined based on whether you meet all of the age and service requirements for the benefit type. In any event, you will receive the best Early Retirement Pension for which you qualify.

Types of Early Retirement Benefits

Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension

An Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension is calculated in the same way as a Normal Retirement Pension, except that it is reduced by the applicable age reduction factor, as described in detail in the latest Plan document. To figure out how much your pension benefit will be if you take an Early Retirement Pension, calculate what your Normal Retirement Pension benefit would be and reduce it based on your age when your benefit begins. This pension must be an applicable type of Early Retirement Pension based on the classification of employment under which your Contribution Hours were worked.

NOTE: If you work at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment after your Contribution Date, your early retirement date will be delayed because of Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed for at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

These are the reduction factors to calculate an unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension:

Your early retirement date may be delayed due to Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

Example: Suppose your Normal Retirement Pension, payable as a Lifetime Payment Option, is $2,500 a month, and you decide to retire at age 62. The age reduction factor for age 62 is 0.7235, so your monthly Lifetime Pension would be $1,809 (rounded up to the nearest dollar).

Standard Early Retirement Pension

A Standard Early Retirement Pension is calculated in the same way as a Normal Retirement Pension, except that it is reduced by an age reduction factor. As of March 1, 2008, the age reduction factor is 0.5% for each month you are younger than age 65.

NOTE: If you work at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment after your Contribution Date, your early retirement date will be delayed because of Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed for at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

To figure out how much your pension benefit will be if you take a Standard Early Retirement Pension, calculate what your Normal Retirement Pension benefit would be and reduce it based on your age when your benefit begins.

Example: Suppose your Normal Retirement Pension, payable as a Lifetime Payment Option, is $2,500 a month, and you decide to retire at age 62. The age reduction factor for age 62 is 0.18 (0.5% times 36 months), so your monthly Lifetime Pension would be $2,050.

Special Early Retirement Pension

The Special Early Retirement Pension provides an unreduced Early Retirement Pension if you retire at age 62 or older. This means the monthly amount of your Special Early Retirement Pension at age 62 is the same as the monthly amount of your Normal Retirement Pension, assuming you meet all eligibility requirements.

If you retire prior to age 62, your Special Early Retirement Pension is calculated in the same way as a Normal Retirement Pension, except that it is reduced by the age reduction factor. As of March 1, 2008, the age reduction factor is 0.5% for each month you are younger than age 62 when you retire.

NOTE: If you work at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment after your Contribution Date, your early retirement date will be delayed because of Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed for at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

Example: Suppose your Normal Retirement Pension, payable as a Lifetime Payment Option, is $2,500 a month, and you decide to retire at age 58. The age reduction factor for age 58 is 0.24 (0.5% times 48 months), so your monthly Lifetime Pension would be $1,900.

55/30 Pension

The 55/30 Pension provides an unreduced Early Retirement Pension at age 55. The monthly amount of your 55/30 Pension is the same as the monthly amount of your Normal Retirement Pension, assuming you meet all eligibility requirements.

NOTE: If you work at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment after your Contribution Date, you will not be eligible for a 60/30 Pension and your early retirement date may be delayed because of Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed for at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

60/30 Pension

The 60/30 Pension provides an unreduced Early Retirement Pension at age 60. The monthly amount of your 60/30 Pension is the same as the monthly amount of your Normal Retirement Pension, assuming you meet all eligibility requirements.

NOTE: If you work at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment after your Contribution Date, your early retirement date will be delayed because of Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed for at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

Age 62 Pension

The Age 62 Pension provides an unreduced Early Retirement Pension at age 62. The monthly amount of your Age 62 Pension is the same as the monthly amount of your Normal Retirement Pension, assuming you meet all eligibility requirements.

NOTE: If you work at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment after your Contribution Date, your early retirement date will be delayed because of Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed for at least one hour in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

Calculating Your Early Retirement Pension

Your Early Retirement Pension depends on several factors, which include when you worked in Covered Employment and your retirement date.

Normal Retirement Pension benefits earned before 2014 will be different than those earned during or after 2014. To determine your Early Retirement Pension, first determine the amount of your Normal Retirement Pension benefit earned prior to 2014. Then, determine the amount earned during and after 2014. The combined amount equals your total Normal Retirement Pension benefit.

Types of Early Retirement Pensions for Hours Worked Prior to January 1, 2014

Your Home Local Schedule—the Rehabilitation Plan Schedule that your Local Union and Employers negotiated into the CBA for your work in Covered Employment—determines the types of Early Retirement Pension for which you may be eligible:

NOTE: If you worked outside of your Home Local under a different Schedule for 3,500 or more Hours of Work in Covered Employment within a period of five consecutive calendar years before the 2014 Plan Year, adjustments could be made under a different Rehabilitation Plan Schedule.

If you worked in Covered Employment under a CBA that was under the First Alternative and subsequently did not make the Contribution Rate increases required as part of the Rehabilitation Plan, you are eligible only for the Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension and/or the Age 62 Pension. This is referred to as “No Increase Consequences” (NIC). Contact the Fund Office to see if this applies to you.

Your early retirement date may be delayed due to Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

Types of Early Retirement Pensions for Hours Worked on or After January 1, 2014

Your Home Local Schedule—the Funding Improvement Plan Schedule that your Local Union and Employers negotiated into the CBA for your job classification—determines the types of Early Retirement Pension for which you may be eligible:

To be eligible for an Early Retirement Pension available under the First Alternative and the Second Alternative, your work in Covered Employment must be covered under a CBA that continues to reflect annual Contribution Rate increases as mandated under the Funding Improvement Plan. If the CBA does not specify a schedule consistent with the Funding Improvement Plan, the applicable type of Early Retirement Pension will be determined by the Contribution Rate increases, if any, made under that CBA.

If you work in Covered Employment under a CBA that does not reflect the required Contribution Rate increases covered under the First or Second Alternative, the Normal Retirement Pension benefits earned on or after the date the increases would have been made will change, as follows:

• If the increases are less than 5%, the Early Retirement Pension that applies to those Contribution Hours worked on or after the date of the increase will be under the Default, and you will qualify only for the Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension.
• If the increases are at least 3.5% but less than 7%, the Early Retirement Pension that applies to those Contribution Hours worked on or after the date of the increase will be determined under the Second Alternative, and you will be eligible for the following types of Early Retirement Pension:
  • Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension;
  • Age 62 Pension; and
  • 60/30 Pension.

Your early retirement date may be delayed due to Non-Signatory Employment. However, you may restore your eligibility if you return to Covered Employment and earn Pension Credit equal to the number of months during which you were employed in Non-Signatory Employment. You have one chance to restore eligibility: your first return to work after your Non-Signatory Employment. See Non-Signatory Employment for more information.

Combining the Early Retirement Pension Benefits

If you retire with an Early Retirement Pension after January 1, 2014, your Early Retirement Pension will be a combination of the pre-2014 and post-2013 benefits. This means that your Early Retirement Pension may consist of more than one type of Early Retirement Pension. For example, a portion of your monthly benefit may consist of a Special Early Retirement Pension and a portion may consist of an Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension.

No matter how many types of Early Retirement Pension are included in calculating your total benefit, it will be paid as one Early Retirement Pension with a single Effective Date.

Example: Nancy earned 15 years of Future Service Credit through December 31, 2013, and 15 more years of Future Service Credit before she retires at age 55.

• As of December 31, 2013, she earned a Normal Retirement Pension benefit of $1,500 under the First Alternative.
• In 2014, the bargaining parties continue a 7% annual increase under the First Alternative.
• In 2015, the bargaining parties elect to make a 5% increase under the Second Alternative.
• In 2016, there is no increase in the Contribution Rate.

In this example, Nancy has three separate retirement calculations representing the different types of Early Retirement Pension available once she retires. At the time Nancy retires, she has earned a Normal Retirement Pension benefit of $3,000. Since these benefits qualify for different types of Early Retirement Pension benefits, we have to perform three calculations for each type of Early Retirement Pensions.

In this example, Nancy’s Early Retirement Pension is calculated as follows:

• First Alternative. Nancy is working under a Contribution Rate that includes a 55/30 Contribution Rate; she has met all other service requirements, so she is not subject to an age reduction for all Normal Retirement Pension benefits.
• Second Alternative. Nancy is retiring at age 55, so she does not qualify for the 60/30 Pension or the Age 62 Pension. This portion of her benefit is subject to an unsubsidized age reduction.
• Default. This portion of Nancy’s benefit is subject to an unsubsidized age reduction.

In this example, Nancy is entitled to an Early Retirement Pension monthly benefit of $2,113 per month ($1,600 + $36.59 + $475.67 = $2,113, rounded up to the next whole dollar).

Person for Whom

A Person for Whom is a Participant who is eligible only for the Unsubsidized Early Retirement Pension. You are considered a “Person for Whom” if, prior to 2013, you met the following requirements:

• You had a One-Year Break in Service in or after 2008; and
• In the year immediately following your One-Year Break in Service, you did not work at all in Covered Employment; or
• You, effective July 1, 2013, worked under a classification of employment for which Plan contributions stopped (regardless of whether the contributions ceased to be made before July 1, 2013).

No new Person for Whom Participants have been added since 2013—when the Fund emerged from Critical Status. If you are considered a Person for Whom, it is possible to be reclassified if, prior to becoming a Person for Whom:

• You have not retired;
• You have worked under a First Alternative or Second Alternative, which is your Home Local Schedule; and
• You return to work in Covered Employment for at least one Year of Service on or before December 31, 2022, in a classification of employment that would have been covered under that Schedule when the Fund was in Critical Status.

NOTE: That Schedule cannot provide a higher level of subsidized Early Retirement Benefits than the Schedule under which you worked before you became a Person for Whom.