Our Pension Fund's Status
Our 1199SEIU Pension Funds, like every pension fund in the country, took an enormous hit in the 2008 stock market crash, and our Benefit Funds continue to struggle with the ever-increasing costs of healthcare. So, in early May, to stabilize the Pension Fund and preserve your comprehensive health benefits, your Union and employers came together to find solutions.
The League employers and the Union were able to negotiate a new collective bargaining contract—during one of the most difficult economic climates ever—which preserves your Defined Benefit pension plan and health benefits with no out of pocket costs.
The Greater New York employers and the Union were unable to reach an agreement and the contract was referred to arbitration. The arbitrator’s award preserves Greater New York pension and health benefits for the time being. Members will receive more information on the award soon.
For more information, contact your Union Delegate or Organizer. You can also click on the links below to learn more about your benefits.
Your Defined Benefit Pension Plan vs. a 401(k) or 403(b)
1199SEIU members have one of the richest benefit packages in the country including a Defined Benefit pension plan, which sets you apart from most American workers.
What is a Defined Benefit pension plan?
With defined benefit pension plans like ours, once you are vested you have the right to a pension when you retire. You’ll get a set amount each month for the rest of your life. Your employer pays into the Pension Fund for your retirement, and those contributions are pooled. These assets are managed collectively and invested, pursuant to a disciplined policy, to support pension benefits for all of our members.
How is that different from a 401(k) or 403(b)?
The people we all know who have lost so much of their individual retirement savings had defined contribution plans – 401(k)s and 403(b)s. With those plans, workers put their own money into an individual account. Employers sometimes match these contributions, but often they do not. There is no set, fixed monthly amount that the worker can count on at the time of retirement. Workers manage their own money, and if the stock market fails, whatever money is lost is difficult to recoup, unless they can wait a very long time to retire.
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How Your Pension Benefits Are Invested
The Trustees of our Fund oversee and monitor the work of our Investment Team, which handles the day-to-day management of the Fund’s investments. The team works with a variety of investment managers to ensure that the Fund’s assets are invested in a broad array of investment opportunities within the allocation policy set by the Trustees, maximizing returns while protecting against losses. This disciplined and diversified investment strategy served us and other funds well for many years. But the economy’s dramatic plunge in 2008 hit all areas across the board and no asset class, and therefore, no pension fund was immune.
If you want to receive more information about the Fund’s investments, you can request it by writing to the Pension Department at 330 West 42nd St, 10th Floor, New York, NY 10036.
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Who to Contact with Questions
Please contact your Delegate or Organizer if you have any questions about negotiations or your contract. For questions about your pension benefits or your Fund, contact us at pension@1199funds.org.