Q. I am an FERS GS with four years until I get my 20 under 6(c) law enforcement officer and a year and half after that until mandatory retirement. I have been offered a 6(c) job overseas — how is the high-3 calculated? Is it on the base level GS schedule (plus LEAP) I actually earn, or is it based on a modified amount of what I would have earned in DC — which is how the overseas postings on Foreign Service retirement seems to work? I am pretty sure all the COLA, post allowances and danger pays don’t calculate…
Browsing: mandatory retirement
Q. I will be forced to retire at age 57 in January 2014. I am no longer working in a prison, and I am working beside nonlaw enforcement employees who are doing the same job. There are many employees here that were hired after they reached 57 and they can work until they want to retire. With the economy being the way that it is, I do not want to retire at 57. It makes no sense for me to be forced to leave with 25 years of experience, and yet they are going to hire a replacement that will…
Q. Since I am forced to retire this year from the Bureau of Prisons at age 57, do I have to fill out the retirement paperwork, or is it automatic in my case? When will I be notified that I can no longer report to work? Will it be from the Office of Personnel Management or my institution? A. Yes, you have to fill out the paperwork. If you look at a copy of the Standard Form 3107, Application for Immediate Retirement, you’ll see why. Among other things, there are decisions on it that only you can make. Further, your…
Q. I am facing mandatory retirement from a covered law enforcement position after 25 years. I would like to take a noncovered position in a different job series that’s nonlaw enforcement. Can I collect my full retirement? How would my retirement be affected? A. You could either retire and begin working in another position or transfer to another position and continue working. In the first case, the salary of your new position would, in most cases, be offset by the amount of your law enforcement officer annuity. In the second, you would continue to be a salaried employee. You could…
Q. I am a GS-1811 law enforcement officer in FERS who is scheduled for mandatory retirement in December 2013. If I retire then or, say, retire before 62 (in the event I get another federal position), is there an earnings test on the Social Security supplement payable to me before I reach 62? A. If you retire before your minimum retirement age (not age 62), you’ll be able to earn as much as you want without it affecting your special retirement supplement. However, as soon as you reach your MRA, the earnings test will apply. MRAs range between 55 and…
Q. I am a federal firefighter GS-12 and am facing mandatory retirement in 15 months. I have been offered another job on base that is not in the 0081 category but is still a GS-12. I could work past 57 in this position, but will I lose my 1.7 percent annuity for my first 20 years if I accept this position? I have 26 years and am only getting 1 percent per year now. A. Your 1.7 percent annuity multiplier for 20 years of firefighter service is locked in. No matter what kind of job you take, it won’t have…
Q. I worked 20 years and two months in a covered firefighter position. I then worked two years in a non-covered position. I have returned to a secondary covered position. Do I face mandatory retirement? Or does my break in service allow me to work past 57? Where would I find the answer in the federal regulations or is this decided by case history. A. Yes, you will face mandatory retirement. Go to www.opm.gov/retire/pubs/handbook/C046.pdf and scroll down to Section 46A3.3-2B1, which applies to both CSRS and FERS LEOs and firefighters. Note: That section hasn’t been updated to show that the…
Q. I am an air traffic controller subject to mandatory retirement at age 56. I am under FERS. When I reach age 56, I will not have 20 years of service. Can I continue as a controller until I reach my 20 years of service even though I will be past age 56? A. Yes.
Q. I am a federal air traffic controller facing forced retirement at age 56. There is a Social Security “bridge” supplement to cover the gap between 56 and the age when I can draw full Social Security. Is any portion of my retirement subject to earning restrictions? A. Yes. Your special retirement supplement will be reduced or suspended if you earn more from wages or self-employment in a calendar year than the annual Social Security earnings limit. In 2012, that limit is $14,640.
Q. I started in a 6(c) covered position on April 30, 1986. I will be mandatorily retired July 29, 2016. That will give me 30 years and three months of service. I hope to also have one year and three months sick leave to give me 31.5 years total. Will the sick leave time count toward my years on my supplement (31.5 / 40 = 78.75 percent of Social Security estimate)? A. No. Your special retirement supplement will be based solely on your years and full months of actual FERS service.