Q: I have been on disability retirement and collecting SSID since 2001. I suffered a spinal cord injury that wasn’t job-related. I have 14 years Leo coverage at 1.7% per year and four years not in a covered position 1.1? What percentage do I get calculating my retirement annuity while I am under disability retirement, 1.1 or 1.7 for the 20 years, to age 57? And what is the rate up to age 62? If somehow I was able to return to work, a miracle as a Leo, would I receive any credit while I was on disability retirement for…
Browsing: Disability retirement
Q: I have been told that an injured firefighter with the federal service can retire using firefighter guidelines since there was prior service. I am working on the same basis as a civil service employee. I was hurt fighting a fire on base in the late 1980s. I had seven years as a fireman before I had to be placed in a different job because my injury would no longer let me be a firefighter. I paid into retirement as a fireman for about seven years and could have retired in about two more years. My injury is beginning to…
Q: I am a former FERS employee who was placed on disability retirement by the U.S. Postal Service because of PTSD. I was 58 at the time with 14 years as a full-time employee. I was told that, after reaching age 65, my pay would change, and I would receive more. Does anyone know how this works? A: At age 62 – not 65 – your annuity will be recomputed using the standard FERS formula: 0.01 x your high-3 on the day you went on disability retirement x your total years of FERS service. The product will be increased by…
Q: My husband injured his back in 2007. We have been struggling with his claim. We finally got a letter stating he was approved. The letter says we have to choose the Office of Workers’ Compensation Program or the Office of Personnel Management program. He is FERS and is 59 years old. He is getting retirement until his disability was approved and also is getting Social Security disability. They want us to sign the form indicating which one we choose, but when we call the office, they say they cannot help answer any questions until we sign the form. How…
Q: I am a 53-year-old military technician who has a Service Computation Date of 28 years civil service under FERS. I just lost my military position due to a medical condition. I applied for a FERS medical disability due to loss of my position for medical reasons and was denied because I qualify for Discontinued Service Retirement. Since I haven’t reached my MRA of 56, should I still be retired under a medical disability? If I don’t qualify for a medical and retire under a DSR, will I receive the Social Security supplement, or will I have to wait until…
Q: I am under FERS, and I am considering applying for disability due to bypass heart surgery. I am also retired from the active Air Force (20 years and collecting a pension). I’ve studied chapters 61 and 62 “Computation of Disability Retirement,” and under the General Rule it indicates active-duty military retirees are not eligible for the guaranteed minimum disability annuity compensation. Based on an answer you provided to a person in similar circumstances, this apparently does not apply to FERS. If that is true, then I have a question about computation for me if I stay to age 60…
Q: I receive federal disability retirement from the U.S. Postal Service after 27 1/2 years of service. My disability was approved for anxiety and severe depression. During my postal career, I was a city letter carrier. I have an opportunity to take a job as a medical courier. Do you think this job will jeopardize my continuing to receive disability? The two jobs are a bit similar in nature, however the stress level of the new job would be far less. I do not want to jeopardize my disability in any way. There is no way I could ever return…
Q: I am a Federal Employees Retirement System dual-status federal technician in the Army National Guard. I am looking at a possible involuntary separation because of losing my dual status (nonmedical related) later this year. I am 45 years old with 12 years of federal service. Would I qualify for any type of involuntary separation/disability annuity payment? A: You would be eligible for disability retirement if you are separated due to a disability that disqualifies you from membership in a reserve component of the armed forces or from holding the military grade required for such employment; you aren’t appointed to…
Q: I am 62 years old, and my Federal Employees Retirement System disability retirement benefit has been recalculated to a regular annuity. I am still on Social Security disability. Will Social Security offset the amount that I will be getting in my annuity? A: No, it won’t.
Q: I was hired after 1983 to a nonmilitary position. I left federal employment with a 40 percent Federal Employees Retirement System disability annuity. I was recently approved for Social Security disability. It is my understanding that per Federal Law 5 U.S.C. 8452(a)(2) that my monthly FERS disability check will be reduced by 60 percent of my Social Security disability benefit. That doesn’t seem fair. Isn’t there a bill pending in Congress that repeals this? Do you know which bill I should refer to when I contact my Congressman? A: That’s the law and, to the best of my knowledge, no…