For Immediate Release

Governor signs 55/25 into law

Feb 28, 2008 6:29 PM

A 55/25 retirement option long sought by the UFT took effect on Feb. 27 when Governor Eliot Spitzer signed the legislation needed for it to become law. The landmark pension bill enables eligible UFT-represented educators to retire with unreduced benefits five years sooner than they could before.

Under the new retirement option, in-service educators in Tiers II, III and IV will be able to retire with 25 years of service and begin collecting an unreduced pension at age 55. Previously teachers and other Teachers’ Retirement System members hired after 1973 had to work 30 years or wait until they were 62 in order not to have their pensions reduced, while Board of Education Retirement System members, such as therapists and nurses, had to be 62 to retire with an unreduced pension.

Starting on Feb. 27, eligible UFT members have a one-time-only 180-day window to opt in.

UFT President Randi Weingarten issued the following statement in response:

“This is a great day for educators who want to make teaching New York City’s school children not just a calling but a career. After 14 years of work – and much frustration and false starts – New York City teachers can thank both the collective bargaining and the political process, specifically Governor Spitzer and the leadership in the state Legislature, for approving this measure and Mayor Bloomberg and his team for jointly supporting it.

“The legislation will allow teachers hired after 1973 with 25 years or more of service to retire at age 55 without a reduction in benefits. Teaching is really hard work, and 25 years constitutes a teaching career. Our members deserve to be able to retire with their full pension, and now they know they have the opportunity in the next six months to elect it.

“This program, negotiated by the United Federation of Teachers and the city, arises from the 2005 collective bargaining agreement where the parties jointly agreed to support legislation of this kind if it was cost-neutral to the city. That is exactly what the parties did on terms comparable to what other unions negotiated over the past 15 years. The prospective 55/27 plan will help the city’s efforts to retain good teachers because it will give young educators an incentive to join and stay in the city school system.”