Are you missing out on TRS benefits?

Tens of thousands of newer teachers may be missing out on some valuable benefits and important protections because they have not enrolled in the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) or provided the TRS with other vital information.

The TRS is concerned that only 18 percent of the teachers hired since August 2008 have submitted enrollment forms and only 25 percent have designated their beneficiaries or provided proof of their date of birth.

Why are so many newer teachers missing out on TRS benefits?

• Some may hesitate to enroll in TRS because they think — erroneously — that they can’t afford the pension contribution at this point in their career. In fact, if you are a regularly appointed teacher, you are automatically a member of the TRS and your pension contribution is already deducted from your paycheck.
• Others think they are already enrolled in the TRS because they see a payroll deduction for pension on their pay stubs. Remember that the pension deduction is set in motion automatically. Enrollment is not.
• Still others may have lost track of the welcome kit that the TRS sent all new members back in November because of the holiday rush and too much to do. The kit includes enrollment and other forms plus some helpful TRS publications, such as “Your Benefits in Brief,” which summarizes the provisions of TRS membership.

Whatever the reason, you may be contributing to your pension but not getting your money’s worth. You may be missing out on benefits or protections such as these:

• You may qualify for TRS pension credit for prior service, either through transferring that credit from another public retirement system in the state or city of New York or by buying it back — but only after joining the TRS and completing two years of credited service. This credit could add thousands of dollars to the value of your pension. The sooner you file your enrollment application, the sooner the TRS will be able to set up your account.
• Members who die while in service are entitled to a death benefit worth one year’s salary for each year of credited service, up to a maximum of three years, payable to their designated beneficiaries. Those beneficiaries must be named on a “Designation of Beneficiary” form provided by the TRS. If this form is not on file or has not been updated, your wishes concerning who gets the death benefit may not be carried out. It is truly tragic when the UFT learns about a young teacher who died in an accident or as a victim of crime and the family has to go through slow and uncertain legal channels to get what could have been theirs quickly and automatically.

How do you know if you are among the “missing”? You may not know, but you can find out.

To check what forms or information may be missing from your file, call the TRS at 1-888-8NYC-TRS and follow the prompts to speak to a TRS representative. Then, if you need to, submit a TRS enrollment form, a Designation of Beneficiary form, or any other missing information that the TRS needs for your account, such as your date of birth. (Go to www.trs.nyc.ny.us and click on Forms.)

It won’t cost you anything to provide this information — and it could save you a small fortune in benefits and protections for yourself and your loved ones.