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EGC EMPLOYEE HANDBOOK Section 8: BENEFITS 8.1 Teachers Retirement System of Georgia 8.2 Definition of a University System of Georgia Retiree/Eligibility for Retirement 8.4 Benefits Continuation into Retirement 8.5 Employment Beyond Retirement 8.8 Tax Sheltered Annuities and Deferred Compensation Plans 8.12 Long-Term Disability Insurance |
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8.1 Teachers Retirement System of Georgia East Georgia College staff (non-faculty) employees are required to participate in the retirement system provided for its employees by the University System of Georgia. The Teachers Retirement System of Georgia was established by the General Assembly of the State of Georgia and placed under the management of a Board of Trustees for the purpose of providing retirement allowances for teachers in Georgia. As a condition of employment, all regular employees who work one-half time or more, and are otherwise qualified, are required to be members of the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia. Membership is waived for any individual who has attained age sixty and first became a member on or after July 1, 1987 – or for persons attaining age sixty who have previously withdrawn employee contributions from TRS and again entered the profession on or after July 1, 1987. The membership contribution rate is currently five percent of gross salary paid. In addition to this contribution, the college also contributes to the system on the employee’s behalf. All employee contributions to the Teachers Retirement System are tax deferred. Employees will be responsible for full tax liability at any time the contributions are refunded due to IRS regulations. Employees transferring to another institution of the university system or a public school in the state of Georgia with no break in service time will transfer their creditable service time and contributions paid to that school. Teachers Retirement System regulations and provisions are available in the Human Resoures Office. Vested members of the Employees Retirement System of Georgia transferring to East Georgia College will have the option of continuing their membership and contributions to ERS. 8.2 Definition of a University System of Georgia Retiree/Eligibility for Retirement Effective 11/01/02, to be eligible for retirement from the University System of Georgia, an employee must meet one of the following four conditions at the time of his/her separation from employment, regardless of the retirement plan elected by the employee:
An individual who has retired from another State of Georgia sponsored retirement plan may not count such retirement service toward meeting the eligibility criteria for retirement from the University System of Georgia A University System of Georgia employee who is employed prior to November 1, 2002, and who had a break in service shall be eligible to retire as a career employee provided that on the date of his\her date of separation from employment:
A State of Georgia employee who became an employee of the University System of Georgia prior to November 1, 2002, and who remains as a current USG employee, shall be eligible to retire as a career employee provided that on the date of his/her separation from employment:
A State of Georgia employee who is employed by the University System of Georgia, a previous USG employee who is rehired by the System, or a new hire of the USG after October 31, 2002, shall not be entitled to career status and must otherwise meet the definition of a retiree as set forth in Section 802.0902 of the Board of Regents Personnel Policy, to be eligible for benefits continuation into retirement. An individual, who has retired from another State of Georgia sponsored retirement plan may not count Such retirement service toward meeting the criteria for being a career employee. 8.4 Benefits Continuation Into Retirement A University System of Georgia retiree or career employee who upon his/her separation of employment from the University System of Georgia meets the criteria for retirement as stated in the Board of Regents Personnel Policy, Section 802.0902 “Definition of a Retiree/Eligibility for Retirement or Section 802.0904, Career Employee, shall remain eligible to continue as a member of the basic and dependent group life insurance and health benefits plans. The University System shall continue to pay the employer’s portion of the cost for such benefits. 8.5 Employment Beyond Retirement When an individual retires from the University System of Georgia and is receiving benefits from the Teachers Retirement System, the Employees Retirement System, or the Regent’s Retirement Plan, s/he shall not be re-employed by the University System without the prior approval of the Board of Regents. When an employee has retired from the University System of Georgia, s/he may be re-employed by the University System of Georgia under the following conditions:
Regular faculty members and administrative officers with faculty status who are employed at least one-half time or more as defined in Sections 302.02 and 302.03 of The Policy Manual of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia with less than 10 years of creditable service under the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia as of July 1, 1990, and who are eligible for membership in the Teachers Retirement System shall be eligible for the Optional Retirement Plans offered by the University System of Georgia. The faculty member or administrative officer must elect to participate in either the Teachers Retirement System or the Optional Retirement Plan within sixty days of the employment date. As with the Teachers Retirement System, the employee and the employer both contribute to the Optional Retirement Plan. East Georgia College employees are eligible to join the Robins Federal Credit Union. Family members of each eligible employee are also welcome to join the credit union. Such membership is offered to the employees, but the college does not regulate or decide policy for the credit union, which is operated by a separate board of directors. The credit union offers its members various savings plans, checking account benefits, IRA’s, and loan plans. Detailed information on the benefits offered by the credit union is available in the Human Resources Office. 8.8 Tax Sheltered Annuities and Deferred Compensation Plans Employees may wish to participate in various tax-deferred annuity programs and/or deferred compensation plans wherein they invest a portion of their salary affording a current tax benefit. Income invested in such programs is not subject to federal taxes until it is withdrawn at a later date. The college does not approve or disapprove any plan or underwriting company. Proper investigation of each program is the employee’s responsibility. Further information concerning these optional savings plans may be obtained by contacting the human resources office. Choices are limited to those companies presently having contracts with the college. All regular, benefits-eligible employees of East Georgia College are covered by life insurance with accidental death and disability provisions. Each employee eligible for benefits working one-half time or more will have $25,000 in basic life insurance coverage with accidental death and disability provisions. Such coverage is provided by the college at no expense to the employee. In addition, employees may purchase life insurance on their dependents as provided by the plan and additional (supplemental) life insurance for themselves. East Georgia College provides its regular employees who are employed on a one-half time or more basis the opportunity for single, employee plus one, or family healthcare benefits. The coverage is optional with the employee paying a percentage of the premium cost and the college contributing a percentage of the premium cost. Upon employment, an employee may enroll within thirty-one days. Otherwise, an employee may enroll during the annual open enrollment period. A full explanation of the benefits and booklets are available in the Human Resources Office. Any employee who terminates employment, has a reduction in hours to less than one-half time, or is terminated for any reasons other than gross misconduct or for cause, is eligible to continue the healthcare coverage for a limited time under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) of 1986. Coverage under the COBRA provision is also available to dependents who lose coverage due to divorce, death of the employee, or ceases to be eligible for coverage due to attaining maximum age limitation. The former employee would assume 102% of the cost of the coverage. Details are available in the Human Resources Office. East Georgia College offers a comprehensive dental plan for its employees and their dependents. The employee pays the full cost of the premium. Enrollment is limited to within thirty-one days of employment unless otherwise specified by the Board of Regents. Dental insurance is not available during the annual open enrollment period. 8.12 Long Term Disability Insurance East Georgia College offers a long-term disability insurance protection plan to employees. This insurance provides a monthly income in the event of a total disability while employed at the college. This is a voluntary program with all premium costs paid by the employee. Additional information is available in the Human Resources Office. All employees of East Georgia College are covered under the provisions of the Georgia Workers’ Compensation Law. This law provides protection for employees in the event of injury or death while performing services for the college. There is no employee contribution. In the event an employee sustains any injury, regardless of how small it may seem, it must be reported to the Human Resources Office at once. Determination will be made concerning the advisability of first aid or additional medical treatment. Failure to report an injury may result in non-payment of any medical claims. All regular employees of East Georgia College, except those specifically excluded under an agreement with the Social Security Administration, are covered by the Federal Social Security Act. This act provides aid to dependent children, disability payments, retirement, and death benefits. Deductions are made from salary for the employee’s share of the cost of providing this insurance, with the college also contributes a matching percentage. The deduction is split between the old age insurance and Medicare. Regular employees working less than one-half time are only covered by the Medicare portion of the social security tax. 8.15 Unemployment Compensation Employees are also covered under the Georgia Employment Security Law, commonly referred to as Unemployment Compensation. The law provides some economic security when persons become unemployed through no fault of their own. The unemployment payments are paid by the employer and are supplied by this act help the worker get through the difficult time of unemployment and maintain some degree of purchasing power. Eligibility for these benefits is determined through information requested by the Georgia Department of Labor and provided by the employer. East Georgia College is committed to the continued professional growth and development of it’s regular fulltime employees. Faculty, staff, and administrators are encouraged to participate in development activities and study. Career development activities may include, but are not limited to, the following examples of program offerings:
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11/19/2010 |
