You can retire on a Normal Retirement Pension if you are a Participant who has reached age 65 and have either:

• Achieved Vested Status—that is, completed at least five Years of Service—or
• Have earned:
  • 10 or more years of Pension Credit, including at least five years of Future Service Credit; or
  • 15 or more years of Pension Credit, including at least one year of Future Service Credit, and have attained age 55.

Generally, you must be considered “retired” under the Plan to receive a pension, meaning you cannot be engaged in any Disqualifying Employment or perform any work in the Sheet Metal Industry as of the date you want benefits to start. See Suspension of Benefits for more information about what is Disqualifying Employment or work in the Sheet Metal Industry.

How a Normal Retirement Pension Benefit Is Calculated

Normal Retirement Pension benefits earned before 2014 might be different than those earned during or after 2014. To determine your Normal Retirement Pension benefit, 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.

For hours worked on or after January 1, 2014, your Normal Retirement Pension benefit is calculated using a Variable Benefit Accrual Rate (VBAR) formula. The Variable Benefit Accrual Rate (also referred to as the Applicable Percentage) is a percentage tied to the Fund’s average investment return over a three-year period, as shown in the chart on the following page. To determine the three-year average, the Plan uses the investment return percentages which the actuary reports in the annual Actuarial Valuation and Review.

Visit the Fund’s website to find out the Variable Benefit Accrual Rate for each year since it was adopted.

In addition, the benefit formula takes other factors into account when determining the amount of the Normal Retirement Pension benefit you earn each year:

• Contribution Hours: The total number of hours for which Plan contributions are required to be made for your work in Covered Employment. For example, if you worked 1,700 hours in Covered Employment during a Plan Year, you would have 1,700 Contribution Hours for that Plan Year.
• Contribution Rate: The hourly rate required to be paid by your Employer for each Hour of Work you perform in Covered Employment.
• Benefit Rate: The Contribution Rate less the 55/30 Rate (as applicable) and used to determine the amount of your Normal Retirement Pension benefit if:
  • you are working under a CBA (or similar agreement) that qualifies for a 55/30 Pension, your Benefit Rate is equal to your Contribution Rate MINUS the portion of the Contribution Rate attributable to the 55/30 Rate. Currently, the 55/30 Rate is 30% of your Contribution Rate, so 70% of your Contribution Rate is used to determine your Normal Retirement Pension benefit.
  • If you are not working under a 55/30 Rate, your Contribution Rate will be equal to your Benefit Rate.

Contact the Fund Office if you are not sure if the Contribution Rate includes a 55/30 Rate.

Calculating a Normal Retirement Pension Benefit

The Fund uses the three factors discussed on the previous page—VBAR, Contribution Hours, and Contribution Rate—to determine the portion of your Normal Retirement Pension benefit for each year you work in Covered Employment. Then, the Fund adds up the amounts determined by the formula to arrive at a total monthly Normal Retirement Pension benefit.

_{*If a 55/30 Rate applies, 70% of your Contribution Rate (referred to as the “Benefit Rate”) is used in the calculation.}

Example #1: Suppose Pete is working under a CBA with a 55/30 Rate. Pete worked 1,700 hours in Covered Employment during the 2014 Plan Year, his Contribution Rate was $9.80 per hour and the 2014 VBAR—based on the Fund’s average investment return in 2011, 2012, and 2013—was 0.75%. Pete’s accrued benefit for that Year of Service would be calculated as follows:

This calculation also will be done for every year after 2014 that Pete worked in Covered Employment. When Pete retires, his monthly Normal Retirement Pension benefits will be added up to determine Pete’s monthly benefit payable at his Normal Retirement Age, and every month thereafter for his lifetime.

Example #2: Suppose Emma is working under a CBA without a 55/30 Rate. Emma worked 1,700 hours in Covered Employment during the 2014 Plan Year, her Contribution Rate was $5.00 per hour and the 2014 VBAR—based on the Fund’s average investment return in 2011, 2012, and 2013—was 0.75%. Emma’s accrued benefit for that Year of Service would be calculated as follows:

This calculation also will be done for every year after 2014 that Emma worked in Covered Employment. When Emma retires, her monthly Normal Retirement Pension benefits will be added up to determine Emma’s monthly benefit payable at her Normal Retirement Age, and every month thereafter for her lifetime.