Do you get or will you get a pension?

[Tdbo]

My older sis is an assistant principal at a public school. She's in an administrators union while the teachers are in a different union.
Ohio requires teachers get 15 paid sick days a year. She has accumulated over a year of sick time and will cash it out open retiring. So that is a cash bonus when she retires paid for by the tax payers.

Both are covered through STRS Ohio.
I can say that with some certainty, as I am a retired High School Principal in the state of Ohio, and they deposit the money in my account at the beginning of every month.
She may very well be a member of OASSA (as was I during my years as an administrator), which is more of a professional association, instead of OEA, which is the major teacher union in the state.

 

[SammyChevelleTypeS3]

I retired from Sears, what pension I'm getting is through the PBGC that was created from the Enron disaster. After the Titanic sank something is better than nothing but its half of what I was promised over my decades of service.
Lump sums where locked out because of the PBGC oversight before I was old enough to go, wish I had that option at the time, I would have been better off.

I made a poor judgment when I was taken in and told by the company doctor and the personnel manager I would have to take disability retirement. Even though my conditions did prove there was no denying it. I had a hard time accepting it. I talked them out of it for over 6 to 10 months. All I did was screw myself. In those months I stayed on the job the company (we had no idea) was reworking the pension formula which by the time I was finally told "corporate says You Must Go," the renewed pension formula caused me to loose even more.
Still I am thankful the company did the best they could for me and supported me monthly until I won my case that they even provided a lawyer to help me with.

So glad to hear you all got something. Don't get me started on that Enron debacle (made even worse) by certain people who were just looking for all the tv/media fame they could get out of it. YES, Several of the guilty folks were convicted and did time. Sadly many true innocents who had the most slightest / minor dealings in that mess ended up with their lives totally destroyed. Plus all the employees who lost jobs.

 

[Nukeman7]

People cashing out huge reserves of PTO, inflating their last year of work pay, which then feeds into their public pension payout calculation, is a real thing in some locals. As I recall, California, where I live, for example. Instead of someone drawing a pension based off say $150k/year, the calculation is off $200k. Just making up these numbers, but hope you get the point.

Many companies have put an end to this practice by only counting an employee's baseline annual salary towards the pension benefit calculation. Any OT, performance bonuses, per diem, or cashed-in PTO does not change the base pay number.

 

[Elkins45]

Being a public school teacher has a whole lot of negatives, but having a decent retirement system is one of the real positives. When I started teaching the state of Kentucky required us to participate in the pension system and I’m grateful they did. There were some days that the thought of being able to retire at 55 was the only thing that kept me going.

 

[John Galt]

Does anyone know a resource (public, not private, not worth the cost) that will search for a “lost” pension?

I worked for and left a company in 1985 that said in my exit papers that I was vested in a pension worth about $50/mo. Gas money. That company was sold, absorbed many times since and does not exist. Do pensions go poof if the company does? This employer was a Fortune 500 company division that was sold off a few years after I left to another, since defunct, company

 

[gman2304]

My wife has 2 pensions, one from a Fortune 500 company where she was employed for 29 years and received a nice buyout, and one from the USPS where she was employed for 15 years plus she gets a nice COLA added every year. I rolled my 401K over into our investment account when I retired 14 years ago. Along with our pensions, investments, SS benefits and zero debt over the last decade, we’ve been blessed to have the ability to have a post retirement income roughly the same as we had without having to strive for the ‘ legal tender ‘ .

 

[Paco Pena]

Collecting now with 30 years in. It's the reason I stuck in there.

Paco

 

[ls1mike]

Yes one military and one federal government. I did not plan for social security. So I have my TSP and other various investments. I am 51, will go at 57. I will make as much or more as I do now monthly.

 

[02SE]

No pension of any kind. The joys of being self-employed.

However, I have been retired for almost 24 years, pursuing hobbies that in some cases are well compensated. When and if I reach 'official retirement age', we'll see if I get any of the money I've paid in, back.

The wife is also retired with no pension, as she was self-employed.

Maybe @ZZman will share his pension with us??

 

[football]

If the market doesn't dive and stay down, I will have about 5 million in a retirement account at retirement. Using the 4% rule, I can withdraw 4% a year, $200,000 per year, and the balance will basically stay the same for the remainder of my life.

I will get the max social security benefit at 62 (about $3000 a month ish)

I will also get a pension from the state of Florida for about $2500 a month.

Add in my wifes pension and her social security, we should have about $25,000 to $28,000 per month in income in retirement. I hope we are ok.

 

[JTK]

I'll hopefully still have my defined pension when I retire. My company falls into the fortune global 500 pile. I've been with them going on 29yrs. My pension is nothing great, but it grows every year I work. It should easily cover medical costs, etc. for my wife and I.

 

[JeffKeryk]

What's a pension?

Just kidding. Congrats to all who earned their pension. Well done!

 

[wavinwayne]

401k for me, pension for my wife. She's an elementary school teacher who is eligible to retire whenever she wants.

 

[BrianF]

Greatful I have one. Fed defined benefit. Im just shy of mid 40s and can take a reduced pension next year at 20 years if wanted. At 49 I can draw a decent one.

 

[Dean]

Took mine as a lump sum.

 

[tburke]

Started a new gig early last year at a state university, one of the big perks is that we participate in the state teacher retirement system, even in the IT department. I am younger (early 30s) so have a long time to go, but very glad to have a defined benefit as someone in the IT world, it's become extremely uncommon.

 

[2strokeNorthstar]

I better. Been paying into Cal Pers for 20 years now. Plan to retire in my mid 50s and do something I enjoy for part time work.

 

[THORROMIG]

No pension for me neither, company I have worked for the last 5 years did away with it in 2005. They do offer a great contribution into your 401K. They pay 9.2% if you put atleast 6% of your own money. That equals 15.2% and in 2023 I put my contribution total to 10.8% to make it even 20%. I just rolled my previous 401K money into there Fidelity plan when I was hired. I still have atleast 14 years of full time work ahead of me. Welder/Robot Operator

 

[Pablo]

I have worked hard and am not white privileged or lucky. In fact I could have been better with our money if truth be told. My parents were tract home poor, but my dad busted his ass, saved and reached millionaire first.

I left out the fact, until my youngest got into high school my wife was not working again, so a big chunk I was the bread winner alone. We did not have party money, cig money, honey roll money or lounge money. Let along video disc money.

 

[shortyb]

2 Pensions from retired LE, one I have been receiving benefits from @74% of top three salary years since 2007. Second is a SC LE plan for about 15 years of service (ie; not much) and it buys gas, utilities, and taxes. Was able to convert 80 hours of paid leave into a lump sum payout though. No tax since I rolled it into a Roth. Also get an annuity from deferred comp account I paid into for 25 years at first job. Started receiving SS last year as well. So guess what I don't do anymore?