Q. I retired (not by choice) with 31 years under CSRS as a discontinued service retiree from Aug. 2, 2011, through Dec. 17, 2011.
I was placed on priority placement program since I declined my transfer of work to Fort Lee, Va., and subsequently was rehired into the federal workforce Dec. 19, 2011, as a GS-09 (I was a GS-11 at retirement). Therefore, I am losing about $500 per month. I am beginning to think I would have been better off staying a DSR.
How does my CSRS annuity work now? I want to know how long it will be before I can fully retire if I decide to do so. I am age 48 with 31 years of service.
I assume I am starting over again or just have the four-month break in service with the annuity recalculated.
A. As a discontinued service retiree who was involuntarily separated from the government, when you were rehired, your annuity should have stopped. From that point forward, you would be treated no differently than any other employee. As a result, you wouldn’t be able to retire again until you met the age and service requirements. On the other hand, if you were hired into a position that allowed you to keep both your annuity and the salary of your new position, you would continue to receive your annuity; however, when you left, you would get no retirement credit for that period of employment. As such, you wouldn’t be entitled to a supplemental or re-determined annuity.
