Benefits January 19, 2005

Gopher State Workers, Employers Could Face Pension Contribution Hikes

January 19, 2005 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - New proposals to help deal with Minnesota state pension funds' shortfalls would mandate that about 2,000 cities and counties make higher pension payments to the tune of about $85 million annually in higher payroll costs.
Reported by

One bill already introduced in the Minnesota state legislature and another expected to be filed soon would also mean that almost 150,000 public workers would have to shell out more in pension contributions, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reported.

Get more!  Sign up for PLANSPONSOR newsletters.

“The longer we wait, the more it’s going to cost,” said Mary Most Vanek, executive director of the Public Employees Retirement Association, which manages the pension funds, according to the Pioneer Press. “It’s a case of pay us now or pay us later.” The Public Employees Retirement Fund is about 77% funded.

If state lawmakers approve the measures, city and county government workers would see the pension deduction on their paychecks increase. Public safety workers earning $59,000 per year – the average among the public safety pension fund’s 10,115 active members – would see their take-home salary reduced by about $1,100 per year, or more than $90 per month, Vanek said.

As proposed, officers and firefighters would see the pension deduction increase from 6.2% of pay to 9%. Their employers’ contributions to the pension fund would go up from 9.3% to 13.5%.

Any increases would recommend a dramatic turnaround. During the past 30 years, public safety employees have seen a deduction reduced several times, the most recent cut coming in 1999 – moves that were possible because the Public Employees Police and Fire Fund was overfunded. But poor investment returns for several years, coupled with revised actuarial projections about future demands on the system, eroded the surplus, according to the newspaper.

The paycheck blow would not be as harsh for civilian workers, who would see their pension withholding rise from 5.1% of pay to 6% during a three-year phase-in. Their employers’ contributions to the pension fund would go up from 5.5% to 7% during a five-year phase-in. A clerk making $30,000 per year would see the deduction increase $270 per year, or about $23 per month.

A second bill addressing the police and fire fund will be introduced in the coming weeks, Vanek said. It will not recommend benefit cuts, she said.

Compliance January 18, 2005

OSHA Notice Requirements Start February 1

January 18, 2005 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - Employers are required starting February 1 to post a workplace injuries and illness summary, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Reported by

>The OSHA announcement said employers are mandated to post OSHA Form 300A in the workplace from February 1 to April 30, 2005.   The summary must list the total numbers of job-related injuries and illnesses that occurred in 2004 and were logged on the OSHA 300 form.

>Employment information about annual average number of employees and total hours worked during the calendar year is also required to assist in calculating incidence rates. Companies with no recordable injuries or illnesses in 2004 must post the form with zeros on the total line. All establishment summaries must be certified by a company executive, the announcement said.

For more stories like this, sign up for the PLANSPONSOR NEWSDash daily newsletter.

>The form is to be displayed in a common area wherever notices to employees are usually posted. Employers must make a copy of the summary available to employees who move froms worksite to worksite as part of his or her job.

>Copies of the OSHA Forms 300, 300A and 301 are available at  http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/RKforms.html .

>More information on the recordkeeping requirement is at  http://www.osha.gov/recordkeeping/index.html .

«