Pension Benefits

Eight types of pensions are provided under the plan:

1. Normal Pension
2. 30-and-Out Pension
3. Regular Pension
4. Reduced Regular Pension
5. Early Retirement Pension
6. Vested or Deferred Vested Pension
7. Disability Pension
8. Reciprocal Pension

Forms of Payments
Once you retire, your benefits will be continued for life so long as you remain retired. However, you may receive a lower pension if you elect an optional form of payment. For example, if your benefit is paid as a 50% joint and survivor pension, a lower benefit will be paid to you and 50% of your benefit will continue to be paid to your eligible spouse after your death for the remainder of his or her life.

Other ways in which you can have your pension paid include the 100% joint and survivor pension, the 10-year certain and life option or the level income option.

The joint and survivor forms are also available with a "pop-up feature." With a pop-up feature, you are given a lower lifetime pension with a certain percentage payable to your surviving spouse. If your spouse dies before you, your monthly benefit will increase to the unreduced amount and will be payable for your lifetime.

Normal Pension

Eligibility
You are eligible for a normal pension when you have met the following requirements:

• Attain age 65 or more while working in covered employment; and

• Have 25 or more years of benefit service.

You may retire and begin receiving a normal pension on the first day of any month following the date you meet both the age and service requirements.

Amount
The monthly amount of your normal pension, payable as a single life pension, is $2,125.00.

If you are married, with an eligible spouse, your benefit will be paid as a 50% joint and survivor pension unless you and your spouse elect otherwise in writing, before retirement. With the 50% joint and survivor pension in effect, you will receive a lower monthly pension during your lifetime so that payments continue to your spouse after your death.

30-And-Out Pension
Under the 30-and-out pension, you may begin receiving a normal pension once you have earned 30 consecutive years of benefit service under the plan — regardless of age. This means, for example, if you have 30 consecutive years of benefit service at age 50 and decide to retire, your monthly retirement benefit will be $2,125.00 in the single life form. Your benefit is not reduced for age under this provision.

If you incur a break-in-service, your years of benefit service before the break may be combined with your years of benefit service after the break in order to obtain the 30 consecutive years of benefit service, provided that you earn at least 10 years of benefit service after the break.

Regular Pension

Eligibility
You are eligible for a regular pension when you have met the following requirements:

• Attain age 60 or more while working in covered employment; and

• Have 20 or more years of benefit service.

Amount
The amount of your monthly regular pension is based on the benefit level in effect at the time you left covered employment.

The monthly amount of the regular pension payable as a single life pension is $2,100.00.

If you are married with an eligible spouse, your regular pension will be payable as a 50% joint and survivor pension unless you and your spouse elect otherwise in writing prior to retirement.

Reduced Regular Pension
You are eligible for a reduced regular pension when you have met the following requirements:

• Attain age 60 or more while working in covered employment; and

• Have at least 15 but less than 20 years of benefit service.

Amount
A reduced regular pension is based on the regular pension amount of $2,100.00 multiplied by a fraction that is equal to your total years of benefit service divided by 20 years. It is based on your benefit service and benefit levels in effect at the time your active participation stopped.

The monthly amount of the reduced regular pension, payable as a single life pension is:

As with a normal or regular pension, your reduced regular pension will be payable as a 50% joint and survivor pension if you are married with an eligible spouse, unless you and your spouse elect (in writing) otherwise before retirement.

Example:
The following table shows the monthly reduced regular pension based on your total years of benefit service (uneven dollar amounts will be rounded up to the next dollar).

Early Retirement Pension

Eligibility
You are eligible for an early retirement pension when you have met the following requirements:

• Attain at least age 55 while working in covered employment; and

• Earn 15 or more years of benefit service.

Amount
If you retire early, your pension will be calculated in the same way that your regular or reduced regular pension is calculated and payable in a reduced amount based on your age when payments begin. The early retirement amount payable as a single life pension is calculated as follows:

Step 1: Determine your regular or reduced regular pension payable at age 60. (If you have 20 or more years of benefit service, use the regular pension amount. If you have less than 20 years of benefit service, use your reduced regular pension amount.)

Step 2: Multiply the amount payable at age 60 by the early retirement factor (based on your age at retirement in years and whole months) shown in the following table:

For example, let us assume you were born on February 18, 1948 and plan to retire on September 1, 2004. Your age at retirement would be 56 years and 1 whole month. At age 56 and 1 whole month, the early retirement factor would be .765.

As with a normal, regular or reduced regular pension, your early retirement pension will be payable as a 50% joint and survivor pension if you are married with an eligible spouse, unless you and your spouse elect otherwise in writing before retirement.

Example:
The following table shows the monthly early retirement pension (payable as a single life pension) which you would receive based on your benefit service and age at retirement. [Amounts that are not even dollar amounts will be rounded up to the next dollar.]

Disability Pension

Eligibility
You are eligible for a disability pension if you have met the following requirements:

• Left covered employment due to the disability and are permanently disabled;

• Earned 15 or more years of benefit service when the disability began or at least 15 years of continuous employment with the same employer; and

• Had not attained age 60 at the time you became disabled.

  Note: A year of continuous employment is at least 27 weeks of work per calendar year.

If you are entitled to a disability insurance benefit under the Federal Social Security Act, you will be considered permanently disabled. You should apply for a Social Security determination of disability as soon as possible. The Social Security determination is not a requirement for a disability pension, however, approval of a Social Security benefit will expedite the Fund’s disability pension approval process. If proof of a social security determination is not available, the Trustees may require you to submit to a medical examination and to furnish additional proof as they may deem appropriate, including periodic examinations.

Your disability pension is payable as of the first of the month following a waiting period of 26 consecutive weeks after you leave covered employment.

Amount
Your monthly disability pension amount is your monthly early retirement pension. (If you are under age 55, your early retirement factor will be determined as if you were age 55.)

A disability pension is payable for as long as you remain disabled but only until age 60. If your disability continues until age 60, your regular or reduced regular pension (depending on your years of benefit service) will begin.

Recovering From Disability
If you recover from your disability prior to age 60, you will no longer be eligible for a disability pension. After your disability ends, you can apply for an early retirement pension based on your age when you first became disabled, or you can go back to work and earn additional years of benefit service. Your pension when you retire will be determined based on your total years of benefit service under the plan provisions then in effect taking into consideration years of benefit service and applicable benefit levels during each period of employment.

Vested or Deferred Vested Pension

Eligibility
You will become vested, at any age, provided that you have earned five or more years of vesting service and you worked at least one hour in covered employment after May 1, 1999. If you did not work at least one hour in covered employment after May 1, 1999, you become vested in accordance with the rules in effect when you last worked in covered employment. When you become "vested," it means that your years of vesting service and benefit service previously earned cannot be lost, even if you stop working for employers participating in the plan. This would make you eligible for a deferred vested pension.

In the event you continue to work in covered employment after age 65 but do not have five years of vesting service, you will become vested on the date you have been an active participant in the plan for five continuous years (but not before age 65). In this case, you would be eligible for a vested pension.

As a vested participant, you have a right to a pension beginning at your normal retirement date or as early as age 55 if you have 15 years of benefit service. Your normal retirement date is the first day of the month following your 65th birthday or, if later, the date you have five continuous years of active participation under the plan. If you receive your pension before you reach age 65, your pension will be reduced.

Amount
If you are vested and leave covered employment before you are eligible for a normal, regular, reduced, early, or disability pension, you may be entitled to a monthly pension commencing at your normal retirement date or as early as age 55. The deferred vested pension, payable as a single life pension is calculated as follows:

If your pension payments commence before your normal retirement date, your vested pension is reduced by the early commencement factor to reflect your younger age at the time payments begin. Appendix A on page 32 shows the early commencement factors. The applicable factor depends on your age on the date your vested pension payments commence.

Your vested pension will be paid as a joint and survivor pension if you are married and have an eligible spouse unless you and your spouse elect otherwise in writing before retirement.

You should apply for your vested pension in writing during the four-month period preceding the date you wish your pension payments to begin. It is to your advantage to obtain verification of your vested status as soon as you leave covered employment.

The following examples show how your vested pension is determined.

Example 1: Deferred Vested Pension
Let’s say you leave covered employment September 1, 2004, at age 48 with 18 years of vesting service and 14 years of benefit service. You would be entitled to a deferred vested pension commencing at age 65 of $893.00, calculated as follows:

Your monthly deferred vested pension, payable at age 65 as a single life pension, is $893.00.

Example 2: Deferred Vested Pension
Now let’s say Tom leaves covered employment November 1, 2004, at age 50 with 17 years of vesting service and 16 years of benefit service. He would be entitled to a deferred vested pension commencing at age 65 of $1,020.00 calculated as follows:

Example 3: Vested Pension

Reciprocal Pension
The Local 734 Pension Plan has signed reciprocal agreements with other pension plans (called Reciprocal Plans). These agreements allow plan participants to combine service earned under reciprocal plans for purposes of determining eligibility for the various types of pensions available under the plan.

Eligibility
You are eligible for a reciprocal pension if you have met the following requirements:

• You have earned at least one-half of a year of benefit service after January 1, 1971;

• Your combined benefit service under this plan and the other reciprocal plan(s) allows you to be eligible for any pension under this plan;

• You are eligible for a reciprocal pension from the reciprocal plan(s); and

• You receive only reciprocal pensions from this plan and the reciprocal plan(s).

If you were ever employed under a Teamsters collective bargaining agreement, you should check with the Fund Office before you retire to determine whether you may be eligible for a reciprocal pension.

Amount
The amount of your reciprocal pension due from this plan is based on:

• Your benefit service under this plan;

• Your combined benefit service (benefit service earned under this plan plus benefit service earned under a reciprocal plan); and

• The benefit levels in effect at the time you ceased active participation in this plan.

  However, if you only earned service under this plan and the Teamsters Union No. 142 Pension Fund, the benefit levels will be the ones in effect at the time you retire.