Frequently Asked Questions

Vested means you have a nonforfeitable right to a Pension (a lifetime monthly benefit at retirement age) under the Plan.

Generally, no. Plan provisions vary depending on your age and the type of pension you are receiving. The Plan document provides that a bargaining unit participant cannot commence pension benefits before age 70½ until a legitimate severance of employment occurs. After you retire and begin collecting pension benefits, if you work in prohibited employment, your pension benefit […]

Yes. If you are at least age 55, you may reject the Pre-Retirement 100% Spouse’s Benefit and elect the Pre-Retirement Sixty Certain Guarantee to be paid if you die before you commence pension benefits. In order to make this election, you must obtain your spouse’s consent on a form provided by the Pension Fund. Spousal consent […]

During your retirement application process, you and your spouse determine what type of benefits will be available after your death. With your spouse’s consent, you can elect: More information and comparisons are available in the MACRC Pension Fund Summary Plan Description which may be found under the Documents section on the pension page of this website.

Once you are vested, you cannot lose your accrued pension benefit or pension credit. However, before you are vested, it is possible to permanently lose pension credit, vesting credit and your accrued pension benefits, if you experience a break in service. There are two types of breaks in service, temporary breaks in service and permanent breaks in Service. Generally, if you […]

You earn one year of vesting service when you work 1,000 hours or more in any calendar year and your employer is signatory to an agreement which requires contributions to the Plan on your behalf. You can earn partial vesting service, based on your hours of Pension Credit. A maximum of one year of vesting […]

You generally must have at least five Years of vesting service to be eligible for benefits.

Years of vesting service are ways to measure your employment history with a contributing Employer. Eligibility for most benefits under the Plan is based on your years of vesting service. You need to be vested in order to be eligible to receive a future benefit.