Your pension benefits under this multiemployer plan are insured by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), a federal insurance agency. A multiemployer plan is a collectively bargained pension arrangement involving two or more unrelated employers, usually in a common industry. Under the multiemployer plan program, the PBGC provides financial assistance through loans to plans that are insolvent. A multiemployer plan is considered insolvent if the plan is unable to pay benefits (at least equal to the PBGC's guaranteed benefit limit) when due. The maximum benefit that the PBGC guarantees is set by law. Under the multiemployer program, the PBGC guarantee equals a participant's years of service multiplied by:
100% of the first $11 of the monthly benefit accrual rate, and
75% of the next $33.
The PBGC's maximum guarantee limit is $35.75 per month times a participant's years of service. For example, the maximum annual guarantee for a retiree with 30 years of service would be $12,870.
The PBGC guarantee generally covers:
Normal and early retirement benefits
Disability benefits if you become disabled before the plan becomes insolvent, and
Certain benefits for your survivors.
The PBGC guarantee generally does not cover:
Benefits greater than the maximum guaranteed amount set by law
Benefit increases and new benefits based on plan provisions that have been in place for fewer than five years at the earlier of the date the plan terminates or the time the plan becomes insolvent
Benefits that are not vested because you have not worked long enough
Benefits for which you have not met all of the requirements at the time the plan becomes insolvent, and
Non-pension benefits, such as health insurance, life insurance, certain death benefits, vacation pay, and severance pay
For more information about the PBGC and the benefits it guarantees, ask your plan administrator or contact the PBGC's Technical Assistance Division, 1200 K Street, N.W., Suite 930, Washington, D.C. 20005-4026, or call 202-326-4000 (not a toll-free number). TTY/TDD users may call the federal relay service toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected to 202-326-4000. Additional information about the PBGC's pension insurance program is available through the PBGC's website on the Internet at http://www.pbgc.gov.
