CWA/ITU Negotiated Pension Plan
BENEFITS INFORMATION AND RELATIVE VALUE DISCLOSURE

 

BENEFITS

Normal Pension:       Minimum age 65 and vested (5 years of Service Credit).
 

Early Pension:           Minimum age 62 with either 1) 20 years of Service Credit (25 years if your coverage

                                     ended before 1993) or 2) a Social Security Disability Award and  vested.  Pension

                                     amount is permanently reduced based on your age on the effective date, because

                                     payments are expected to be made for a longer period of time.
 

Disability Pension:    You  must  have  a  Social  Security  Disability  Award with a date of entitlement before
                                    May 1, 2009, 10 years of actual Service Credit and a contribution for covered

                                    employment must have been made within 3 calendar years preceding your entitlement

                                    date.  The amount is permanently reduced based on your age, using reduction factors

                                    between ages 60 and 65. Disability  Pensions  are not payable for Social Security

                                    Disability Awards with dates of entitlement on or after May 1, 2009.
 

Preretirement           (a)  Married, Vested Participants.  If you are married for at least one year and Vested

Death Benefit:           but die before you begin receiving a pension, your surviving legal spouse will be

                                    eligible for a monthly survivor pension under the 50% SPOUSE option, with payments

                                    beginning on the earliest date you would have qualified for pension if you had survived.

                                    (b)  Unmarried, Vested Participants.  If you are vested and die before receiving a

                                    pension, your named beneficiary(ies) will be eligible to receive a monthly benefit, to be

                                    determined based on your total credited contributions and payable on

                                    the date you would have been eligible to start receiving a pension

 

APPLYING FOR PENSION

To apply for pension, you may write, call or fax the Plan Office for estimates and an Application for Pension.  In order to prepare estimates, we will need your social security number, proposed retirement date and your spouse's date of birth if you are married.  The Plan Office phone number is (719) 473-3862.  Usual business hours are weekdays 7:30 am to 4:30 pm Mountain Time (9:30 to 6:30 Eastern).
 

You need to sign the application before the month you want your pension to begin, but no earlier than 90 days before the pension start date.  You will also need to send proof of your age with the application.  The Plan Office will accept a legible copy of your birth certificate, baptismal certificate or passport.  In lieu of the above, you may submit a letter obtained from your Social Security Office indicating the date of birth they have established for you.  If you are applying for a Disability Pension, you need to send a copy of your Social Security Notice of Disability Award.
 

You will be asked to select a form of pension payment on the application.  All five choices have approximately the same actuarial value.  You should choose the form of payment which best fits your circumstances.  Some factors to consider are: your current health and the health of your spouse, your retirement income needs and other income sources, your life insurance coverage, your tax situation, and the extent to which you want benefits paid after your death.
 

If you are not married, you have two choices of payment:  LIFE ONLY or LIFE/10.  Each provides a pension for your lifetime.  There are no benefits payable after your death under the LIFE ONLY form of pension.  If you elect the reduced LIFE/10 form of pension and die before receiving the 120 guaranteed minimum payments, the remaining payments will be made to the person(s) you designate on a separate Designation of Beneficiary form that will be sent to you.
 

If you are married, you have five choices of payment.  Any payment form you choose pays a pension for your lifetime.  Payment stops when with your death under the LIFE ONLY form of pension.  LIFE/10 provides that if you die before receiving the 120 guaranteed minimum payments (10 years), the remaining payments will be made to the person(s) you designate.  The three joint and survivor options cover two lives--yours and your spouse's after your death (payments

continue until the last one dies).  The survivor options offer the potential for payments over a longer period of time, so the monthly amounts are actuarially reduced.*However, there is no guaranteed number of payments if both you and your spouse die soon after pension begins.  If you do not select a survivor option, your spouse must consent in writing on a Selection and Spouse Consent form that will be sent to you.  You would designate your beneficiary(ies) for LIFE/10 on that form.
 

FORMS OF MONTHLY PENSION PAYMENT AVAILABLE

LIFE ONLY:       Highest pension amount.  Provides a monthly pension for your lifetime, with payments

                          ending upon your death.
 

LIFE/10:           Actuarially reduced* pension amount based on your age, to provide a guaranteed minimum
                          120 payments.  Provides monthly pension for your lifetime, but in the event you die before

                          receiving 120 monthly payments (10 year minimum guarantee), any remaining guaranteed                               payments will be made to your beneficiary(ies).
 

Additional Options if Married (joint and survivor pension):
 

50% SPOUSE:      Actuarially reduced* pension amount based on your age and the age of your spouse.

                              Reduced pension is paid during your lifetime.  Upon your death, 50% of the monthly  

                              amount will be paid to your eligible surviving spouse for life.
 

75% SPOUSE:      Actuarially reduced* pension amount based on your age and the age of your spouse.

                              Reduced pension is paid during your lifetime.  Upon your death, 75% of the monthly

                              amount will be paid to your eligible surviving spouse for life.
 

100% SPOUSE:     Actuarially reduced* pension amount based on your age and the age of your spouse.

                                Reduced pension is paid during your lifetime.  Upon your death, 100% of the monthly

                                amount will be paid to your eligible surviving spouse for life.
 

For the joint and survivor options (50%, 75% and 100%), the eligible surviving spouse is the person married to you when payments begin.  If your spouse dies, you will continue to receive the same lifetime pension amount and payments end with your death.  If you select a joint and survivor option, a copy of your marriage certificate and your spouse's birth certificate
will be needed.
 

AFTER YOUR PENSION  BEGINS, YOU CANNOT CHANGE THE FORM OF PAYMENT.

*The term "actuarially reduced" means those pension amounts are less than the LIFE ONLY form of payment in order to provide the possibility of additional benefits after your death. The amount of reduction for a spouse option is based on the age difference between you and your spouse.  The "actuarial reduction" for LIFE/10, is based only on your age, without regard to the person you designate to receive any remaining guaranteed benefits.
 

RELATIVE VALUE DISCLOSURE

Relative Value of Pension Payment Options for Married Participants (LIFE ONLY, LIFE/10, 50% SPOUSE, 75% SPOUSE and 100% SPOUSE):
IRS regulations require plans such as ours to give retiring participants a comparison of the relative values of the available benefit payment options.  The goal is to help you make an informed choice about the form in which you receive your retirement benefits. Under this Pension Plan, all of the pension payment options generally available to retiring participants have approximately the same relative value.  This is true for participants retiring between ages 60 and 70 with a spouse up to 10 years younger or older and for disabled participants retiring between ages 30 and 65 with a spouse up to 10 years younger or older.  This conclusion is based on the valuation and reporting methodologies described in the IRS regulation, which can be found at Treas. Reg. section 1.417(a)(3)-1.  Upon your written request to the Plan Office, we will give you a similar comparison based on your own age and estimated benefits, and on the payment forms for which you are eligible.  We will also provide details of the actuarial assumptions used to make the comparison.
 

What is the Relative Value Under our Plan and How Was It Determined?
The "relative values" are based on comparing the actuarial values of the other pension payment options to the actuarial value of the 50% SPOUSE option.  Actuarial values of pension benefits are determined using:
 

• Mortality assumptions, which are based on standardized tables developed by actuarial organizations and life insurance companies.  Information is analyzed about large groups of people to project the rates at which groups of individuals at different ages are expected to die.  These statistical mortality projections are used to develop "average life expectancies.

 

• "Interest assumptions, which estimate the likely investment earnings, over time, of the money put aside to pay benefits.  This is important in the determination of actuarial value because investment earnings provide some of the money used to pay benefits.
   

What Does This Mean to Me?
It is important that you realize this is not a guarantee or even a prediction of what you will actually receive after you retire.  The actual value of a stream of annuity payments for any individual, and its comparison to the values of different payment forms, will vary depending on how long the individual and spouse or beneficiary in fact live and on their ages when payments start.  This is not the only information you should take into account when choosing your payment form for retirement.  Other factors you might want to consider include your health and the health of your spouse, your other sources of retirement income, the resources available to your spouse or family after you die, your life insurance coverage, and the extent to which you want benefits paid after your death.  You may want to consult a financial advisor when you make this important decision.

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What Happens if I Postpone the Start of my Pension?
If you are retired and eligible for an Early Pension, the pension amount will be reduced for each month you are younger than age 65.  Deferring the start of your pension will increase the amount based on the Age Reduction Factors in the Summary Plan Description.
 

If you are eligible for a Normal Pension (age 65 and retired from the industry), your pension amount can increase by 1% for each month you defer the start of your pension.