CONTRA COSTA COUNTY
EMPLOYEES' RETIREMENT ASSOCIATION

• the traditional schedule of an 8 hour day, five days a week,
• the 9/80 schedule of 8 nine hour days, one 8 hour day and one day off in a two week period,
• four 10 hour days
• or any other appropriate 40 hour schedule accepted by your employer and/or union MOU* (*Memorandum of Understanding developed by the triennial meet-and-confer process)
  

You earn 1 year of retirement service credit for each year of full time employment.

Part-Time employees in permanent positions must work at least 20 hours a week in order to be a member of CCCERA.

Your accrued retirement service credit is pro-rated, depending on the number of hours you work in an eligible position. For example, if you worked 20 hours per week in a position designated permanent, part-time, you earn 20 hours of retirement service credit (50% of full time.) Part-time hours are converted to years or percentages of years for retirement calculations.

But if you worked less than 20 hours per week in an eligible position, and no contribution is withheld from your paycheck, no retirement service credit is earned.

• a position of less than 20 hours per week (you are not eligible for membership in CCCERA)
• an unpaid leave of absence (no paycheck=no contribution taken)
• a temporary position (not eligible for membership)
• during military service leave of absence (there are some exceptions in this event)

Service credit is different than retirement service credit. The difference between the two concepts is confusing, but may be easier to understand by looking at some examples.

Service credits are "purchases" of time that can be added to your retirement benefit formula. At time of retirement, unused sick leave is also considered "service credit," which is added to your benefit calculation. These amounts (as years of service), are used as part of the formula to compute the final amount of your retirement benefit. The more years of service you have, the higher your benefit will be. Remember, these purchases do not "count" towards the number of years you need to be eligible to retire, only toward your retirement benefit amount. Retirement service credit and service credit don't necessarily equal the same amount.
For example:

If you were employed by a different public agency (and you will not receive a pension from that agency) before you came to work for the County or a Special District, you may be able to "purchase" this time to add to your service credit at CCCERA. For more details on this option, see Buying Time, in this handbook, and the Service Purchases brochure.

If you were married or in a California registered domestic partnership for part of your career, and that relationship dissolved, your community property settlement may include a Domestic Relations Order (DRO). The DRO may split your retirement account between you and your former spouse/partner. In this circumstance, some or all of your service credit and retirement contributions may be divided between you and your former spouse/partner.

You do not lose your benefit eligibility, but you may lose some years of service credit, which are awarded to your former spouse/partner, as part of a community property settlement. (If your former spouse/partner takes a refund before you retire, you may be able to regain the lost service credit by redepositing contributions.)

• Prior public service with a non-participating   employer in the state of California
  
• Military time
  
• Unused sick leave**
  
• Conversions of time from one tier structure to another
• Federal Government employment
  

• Redeposits
  
• Time prior to membership
  
• Medical Leave of Absence