MAGGIE'S CORNER
GO VEST, YOUNG MAN (OR WOMAN), GO VEST
by Maggie Ostroff
 Maggie Ostroff |
Do you know if you’re vested? Vesting requirements for participants in the Motion Picture Industry Pension Plan have changed through the years, and here’s what I’ve been able to find out. (Hang in here with me, it’s complicated!)
Let’s start with the two plans in which you need to be vested in order to receive money when you retire. And the way things are going in the world these days, we all need to be aware of where we stand with retirement money.
The Individual Account Plan (IAP) is the lump sum of money you get when you retire. It is funded entirely from employer contributions and investments. If you were not already vested prior to August 1, 2000, you become vested in the IAP if you have worked one qualified year (400 hours) with a least one hour worked after the start of the year 2000.
The Pension Plan is where your monthly pay comes from when you retire. It is funded only by employer contributions. However, before October 28, l990, there were also employee contributions taken out of our paychecks. For those of us who made any of these contributions, a small portion of our retirement checks may be non-taxable.
Before l999, you were vested in both plans after ten qualified years. After, that date, you need only five qualified years. If you stop working before you’re vested in the Pension Plan, you will not receive any monies. If you stop working and you are vested, you will receive your pension when you claim retirement.
If you are vested in the IAP and you quit before being vested in the Pension Plan, you can get the IAP money before you retire. The catch is that you have to have a Break In Service before you can get it. And just to jog your memory, a Break In Service is two consecutive years with less than 200 hours worked in each year. (Remember that a qualified year goes from the Sunday before the last Thursday of the previous year to the Saturday before the last Thursday of the present year.) And you have to call the Pension Department and ask for the money.
Now, as unpleasant as this thought is, if you should die before you’ve retired and you are vested in both plans, your beneficiary gets the money from the IAP. If you’re married, your spouse also gets a portion of your Pension money. If you pass away and you’re only vested in the IAP, your beneficiary will get that money.
East Coast members who were vested before 2002 are covered by their Local 771 Plan. Monies earned after the merger fall under the West Coast plans. Anyone who was partially vested before the merger of that Plan into the Motion Picture Plan, with no break in service or forfeiture, and now has a total of at least five qualified years, is totally vested in both plans. This means you don’t lose your pension money earned under the East Coast plan.
Each year, the plan sends out a record of your hours and qualified years. Still confused? Here are numbers to call to check where you stand. East Coast members can call Jean Canalotto at 212-634-5252. For the West Coast, call 818- 769-0007 ext. 627, or visit the Motion Picture Plan website at www.mpiphp.org. These people are really eager to help you, so please call them if you have any questions!