Hypothetical scenario: I qualify for retirement under modified rule 75 but refuse to get vaccinated. If the company wants to terminate me, can I just Retire instead? Is there any difference in benefits, such as, a fired employee is not eligible to same things as a retired employee??
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I have never heard of any rule about 3 month notice, maybe that is a management thing or maybe one of the company's have that rule, but not the Bell that I work for (SWBT district 6). If you are eligible for modified-75 then you have obviously vested in the plan and that benefit now belongs to you. You might research the possibility of making them fire you. Then you could also get un-employment pay for as long as that lasts (with all that is happening that could be a very long time)....... Also, once clearer heads prevail about this crazy mandate you might be owed back pay and punitive awards due to mental anguish over being fired for reasons other than attendance or job performance or misconduct, etc.. Also, once all the craziness is done I believe they would make offers for anyone who was "removed" to return, and you could also take advantage of that situation and take a lot of advantage because now it would seem like a "hostile environment" due to being wrongly "removed". Lot's of EAP benefits to you if the company has made the workplace "hostile".
No one knows what will actually happen but if you just retire on you own request you would not have any chance to receive any unemployment of other payments, you would have voluntarily left and they would just be done with you.
Best Wishes..
I took the voluntary severance package July 2020. After using up my dp’s and ho’s I came in to turn in my keys and cell phone. After getting home that day I called the HR number on my separation packet. My retirement started the next day when I was off payroll. No delays on collecting retirement health benefits, pension takes a couple of months to collect.
Good Luck!
is this a real question? LMAO
If you know it will be inevitable that you will be fired over your stance on vaccination, just give them 2 weeks notice and leave. Then initiate your retirement benefits from outside ATT with the understanding it may take @ 3 mos to kick in.
Unless something has changed recently, 3 months notice is NOT required to retire. I retired this year, and from the date I first notified my supervisor until the date I was gone was about 2.5 months. I could have left sooner, but we agreed on mutually agreeable date (which I was glad to do out of respect for my supervisor and coworkers).
Supervisor must send EPCR to terminate you, which must be done at least 5 days, but no more than 14 days before you termination date. So, I suppose you could retire with only 5 days notice if you wanted.
If you have a pension and want to collect it immediately upon retirement, then Fidelity requires some advance notice. Once you and your supervisor have agreed on your official retirement date, call Fidelity 800-416-2363,9, and ask for "Retirement Benefits Coordinator" to get the process started. You will need to know your official retirement date before Fidelity can start that. You can probably do this online. I had to speak with someone because I had 2 pensions, and there was a complication. Once I returned the signed forms to Fidelity, it took about 25 days for the pension lump sum to roll into my Fidelity IRA; that was 16 days after my termination date.
Also, to address the OP's question: Based on my reading of policies on HR One Stop before I left, if you are dismissed for misconduct, you still keep your pension and 401k, but may be denied retiree benefits, such as health care, life insurance, and service discounts. If you retire, you will get your bonus, prorated for the portion of the year you worked. If you are dismissed for misconduct, you will not get your bonus.
I have not read the vaccination policy, because that happened after I left, but I would say, if you know you are leaving anyway, it would be better to go ahead and retire and keep your benefits. You will be so happy after you leave!
All of the above applies to management. It may be different for union represented.
If you think you are going to sue to company, then obviously, it goes without saying that you should speak with a lawyer before making any decisions.
HR Benefits asks for notice 3 months prior to the retirement date or as soon as one is determined. I know employees who have retired without giving 3 months notice.
OP = original poster
Post ID: @wuy+1cJXGvQO says 'OP here... ' What does that mean? What is an 'OP"
Illinois Health Care Right of Conscience Act
(745 ILCS 70/1) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5301) Sec. 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the Health Care Right of Conscience Act. (Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
(745 ILCS 70/2) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5302) Sec. 2. Findings and policy. The General Assembly finds and declares that people and organizations hold different beliefs about whether certain health care services are morally acceptable. It is the public policy of the State of Illinois to respect and protect the right of conscience of all persons who refuse to obtain, receive or accept, or who are engaged in, the delivery of, arrangement for, or payment of health care services and medical care whether acting individually, corporately, or in association with other persons; and to prohibit all forms of discrimination, disqualification, coercion, disability or imposition of liability upon such persons or entities by reason of their refusing to act contrary to their conscience or conscientious convictions in providing, paying for, or refusing to obtain, receive, accept, deliver, pay for, or arrange for the payment of health care services and medical care. It is also the public policy of the State of Illinois to ensure that patients receive timely access to information and medically appropriate care. (Source: P.A. 99-690, eff. 1-1-17.)
(e) "Conscience" means a sincerely held set of moral convictions arising from belief in and relation to God, or which, though not so derived, arises from a place in the life of its possessor parallel to that filled by God among adherents to religious faiths;
(745 ILCS 70/5) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5305) Sec. 5. Discrimination. It shall be unlawful for any person, public or private institution, or public official to discriminate against any person in any manner, including but not limited to, licensing, hiring, promotion, transfer, staff appointment, hospital, managed care entity, or any other privileges, because of such person's conscientious refusal to receive, obtain, accept, perform, assist, counsel, suggest, recommend, refer or participate in any way in any particular form of health care services contrary to his or her conscience. (Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
(745 ILCS 70/12) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 5312) Sec. 12. Actions; damages. Any person, association, corporation, entity or health care facility injured by any public or private person, association, agency, entity or corporation by reason of any action prohibited by this Act may commence a suit therefor, and shall recover threefold the actual damages, including pain and suffering, sustained by such person, association, corporation, entity or health care facility, the costs of the suit and reasonable attorney's fees; but in no case shall recovery be less than $2,500 for each violation in addition to costs of the suit and reasonable attorney's fees. These damage remedies shall be cumulative, and not exclusive of other remedies afforded under any other state or federal law. (Source: P.A. 90-246, eff. 1-1-98.)
American Airlines announced emoloyees getting religious exemption from the vaccination will be put on UNPAID LEAVE . Sounds like something Stinkey would enjoy doing to AT&T employees
“ You have to put in your retirement request three months prior to your last day.
If you do retire ALL your eligible benefits remain in tact. You are also qualified to return to the workforce at another company or return to ATT if there is an opening.
You can also file for an vax exception. There are a lot of good legal sources on line for creating the strongest case to get that accepted. Religious exemption seems to be the most water tight but your individual circumstance will determine that.
Don’t listen to all the negative nellies on here that say “Shut up and get the jab.” Seems to me they have forgotten we are a communication company.
Good luck
22 hours ago by Anonymous | 27 reactions (+20/-7)
Post ID: @uri+1cJXGvQOL
I gave 5 days notice and got full retirement benefits.
If you leave as a fired employee you lose medical and the life insurance. You have to leave as retired to retain medical coverage and the life policy.
I think I only know one person who was fired from AT&T. They were asked to turn in all their "stuff" and walked out the door that same day.
Yes you can retire. AT&T is very flexible as a company and will give you the option.
3 months is suggested time frame. Not a requirement or what it actually takes.
Get back, better yet stay home and if you get sick DO NOT GOTO HOSP.
Doctors and nurses don’t want you.
If you get fired you won't get any team award bonuses vs if you actually retired.
Are you really asking this question, here, on a forum where 90% of the contributors are misinformed about basic facts, even those readily available via Google? On this forum where so people give out false and misguided ‘information’ — even information that every employee should know but they don’t read, or prefer some rumor over detailed policy? This blog is good for one thing only….comic relief!
I doubt anyone gets fired over this.
BTW: ATT and its PR Consultants are monitoring this blog and other blogs posting pro-jab propaganda. You can easily identify the robo-posting paid consultants on this blog.
The vaccinated are occupying as much or more hospital beds as the unvaccinated. Don't take the poison if you don't feel it's right.
Sorry, one more thing about the 3 month requirement: Fidelity did indeed tell me that they are required by ERISA law that they MUST snail mail you an official pension estimate before you retire. It took them about a week to mail that and another to receive it. You cannot retire until they send you that official doc.
What they mail you is exactly the same as what you can print through their estimator. It is saved as a selectable calculation on the web site.
About the 3 month notification requirement to retire: Yes, indeed, that is on the HR Web site. But when I asked HR, they also said that Fidelity should be ask ALL retirement issues. So I called Fidelity and asked this very question and they said that the plan documents do NOT have this requirement. The (SPA) Plan document override EVERYTHING!
Of course you need to give you mismanagement enough time to put in the ECN or whatever they call that these days so you can get your official last day of work set in stone so paycheck stops so retirement can commence. But once your work your last day at toxic T, you can officially retire the first day of the next calendar month. I asked and I can work till November 30, and officially retire on December 1.
I have seen people retire in the past without the 3 months HR wants.
And since the Ratty and Stink only needs to provide you two weeks notice before wacking you - so F U C K'em.
OP here... as I said it was hypothetical question, I was just curious. I got my vaccine in April, so just relax everyone, ge-z! Thanks to the one that said it takes 3 months to retire, I didn’t know that. So if I were told for Any reason “you’re fired” can I say “no I’m not, I quit (retire)”? Can a person do that?
You have to put in your retirement request three months prior to your last day.
If you do retire ALL your eligible benefits remain in tact. You are also qualified to return to the workforce at another company or return to ATT if there is an opening.
You can also file for an vax exception. There are a lot of good legal sources on line for creating the strongest case to get that accepted. Religious exemption seems to be the most water tight but your individual circumstance will determine that.
Don’t listen to all the negative nellies on here that say “Shut up and get the jab.” Seems to me they have forgotten we are a communication company.
Good luck
Option A: get vaccinated against a deadly disease, avoid the hospital, and keep my job
Option B: don't get vaccinated, maybe end up in the hospital, and get fired
It appears you're headed for some version of option B, so definitely opt for retirement before the company fires you.
I would be more worried about my health and not the job if I was above the age of 50 and unvaccinated. Not everyone in that age group survives the Delta variant.
If you qualify for the modified rule of 75 then you are definitely above the age of 50. Please take care of your health and wear a N95 mask both indoors and outdoors when you are within 12 feet of people. Yes, the virus aerosols can linger in the air, and you could catch the Delta variant even if you maintain 6 feet of social distance. Only a N95 mask has significant potential to save one from getting the virus. If i were you, I would order a box of 3M 8210 masks at Amazon when I have a mental block about taking the vaccine.