CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT ASSOCIATION
  
 

Working after retirement can be appealing from a financial viewpoint. If you plan correctly, and follow the rules, you can keep your monthly pension payment and earn some money, too. Or you can return to the workforce, earning an additional new benefit.

The rules for returning to work and keeping your pension are mandated by statute in the 1937 act, Sections 31680 through 31680.6. There are two usual ways to go back to work:
  1. Return to work on a limited schedule (maximum 960 hours in a fiscal year) while still receiving your pension; OR
  2. Reenter "active" contributing membership (suspending your pension).
  A retiree who is eligible to return to work must meet these criteria:
 
  • You must be receiving a service retirement from CCCERA.
  • Your retirement cannot be a disability benefit.
  • You must have a job offer from Contra Costa County or a Special District.
  • Your new job must qualify for membership in CCCERA.
  1.Working While Receiving Your Pension
  The 1937 Act provides a feature for retirees who are reemployed in positions that require special skills or knowledge. (The employer determines what constitutes "special skill or knowledge.") Retirees can return to work up to 120 days (960 hours) within any fiscal year, without being reinstated to "active" CCCERA membership. You will continue to receive your retirement benefit. No contribution deductions are taken from your salary, so your status as a retired association member stays the same. You do not earn additional service credit with this method of returning to work.
  2.Returning to "Active" Membership
 
After retirement, if you return to a position with a CCCERA employer on a schedule that is more than 960 hours per year, and is eligible for membership, your retirement allowance will be discontinued during the time you are working. You will be reinstated to "active" membership. Retirement contributions will be taken from your salary. You will return to your current employer's tier structure. Your contribution rate for this new work period will be based on your age at reentry into the system. When you retire again, your new benefit will be calculated on the most recent credited service. That figure will be in addition to your retirement allowance from your prior service.
  The good news is you will accrue service credit that will create a new benefit when you re-retire. When you retire again, your benefit will be the total of your original benefit amount, any retiree cost-of-living increases granted while you were reemployed, and your new pension benefit. The new pension benefit will be based on your age, tier, service and final compensation at termination from your reemployment period. (If you are over 60 years of age, the 1937 Act allows you to opt out of retirement contributions during membership. However, if you choose this option, you will not accrue any new service credit during the time you returned to work after retirement.)
  A Word of Caution about Normal Retirement Age

Members who retired before achieving Normal Retirement Age (age 50 for members who retired under the 3% at 50 formula, and age 55 for members who retired under the 2% at 55 formula) must comply with the Bona Fide Separation from Service ruling. This means you must have at least a continuous 90 day break in service before being reemployed by the same CCCERA employer. You also may not have a pre-existing agreement with your employer to go back to work after retirement. These rules do not apply to members who retired at or after normal retirement age, or disability retirements at any age.
For more information on this topic, please see the Winter 2008 edition of the FYI Newsletter, available by clicking the link in this sentence. Call CCCERA to speak with a counselor and get the forms you need to return to work after retirement.
   
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