Retirement Benefits For Those Hired Before April 1, 2010

Master Retirement Plan (MRP)
Retiree Medical Plan

MASTER RETIREMENT PLAN

The Deseret Mutual Master Retirement Plan is a defined benefit (pension) plan completely funded by Brigham Young University and is designed to enhance your retirement income when it is combined with other programs, such as Social Security and personal savings. At retirement, benefits are calculated based on your salary, years of service, age, and benefit credit.

PARTICIPATION

You will automatically become a participant in the MRP after you meet the requirements for eligibility. These include:

• Age 21 or older
• Work at least 1,000 hours within the first 12 months of employment or within any future year
• Not be hired into an excluded class

BENEFIT CREDIT

Benefit credit means the number of years of credited service you have earned as a participant. This is used to calculate your retirement benefit. Benefit credit:

• Begins the later of age 21 or your hire date,
• Has a maximum of 33 years, and
• Is calculated and awarded on a monthly basis.

All credited service begins on the first day of the month. If your participation date is:

• The first day of the month, credited service begins that day.
• After the first day of the month, credited service begins the first day of the following month

VESTING

Vesting means ownership of retirement benefits. In other words, you have worked long enough to qualify for a benefit at retirement, even if you terminate employment before then. Vesting credit begins at the later of age 18 or your hire date. Eligible participants are 100% vested after five years of credited service.

You may be entitled to the MRP benefits at normal retirement age, at early retirement age, or as a vested employee who terminated employment before retirement age.

FINAL AVERAGE SALARY

Your final average salary is the average of the highest five (5) years of salary.

BENEFIT CALCULATION

For the Standard Retirement Benefit at age 65, the retirement benefit is calculated by using the following formula:

1. Add your annual eligible salaries for your five highest years
2.  Divide the result by 60 to get your monthly final average salary
3. Multiply your monthly final average salary by 1.5% (your benefit accrual rate).
4. Multiply that result by the number of years of benefit credit you have earned.

Other factors (e.g. age at retirement, your choice of payment option) may affect the final benefit amount.

BENEFIT PAYMENT OPTIONS

Several payment options are available upon retirement. Careful consideration of each option is recommended to determine which option best suits your needs. An appointment with the Retirement Specialist at 801-422-4486 may be scheduled at any time to plan for retirement, but should at least be scheduled four (4) months prior to retirement to begin the retirement process.

RETIREE MEDICAL PLAN

Employees that retire from BYU with at least 10 years of eligible BYU service may qualify for the retiree medical plan. Please see the information below regarding eligibility and timeframes.

• Employees with eligible service before April 1, 2010, may be eligible for retiree medical when they are at least age 55 with 10 years of eligible service.  Between the ages of 55 and 65, the retiree may enroll in the same plans offered to our active employees; however, the retiree will pay a larger share of the premium.
• BYU contributes a fixed dollar amount toward the monthly medical premiums in retirement. The amount BYU contributes depends on the years of an employee’s eligible service.  BYU starts premium sharing after an employee reaches 10 years of eligible service.  Once an employee reaches 20 years of eligible service, BYU will pay 100% of the employer portion towards the retiree medical premiums. 
  NOTE:  BYU’s maximum contribution does not pay the entire monthly premium. The employee is responsible for paying the balance.
  

• At age 65, retirees must enroll in Medicare as their primary insurance. A retiree may also enroll in the DMBA Medicare Supplement plan, Deseret Alliance, to supplement their Medicare benefits.  BYU will continue premium sharing throughout retirement.
• The retiree medical plan premium includes a $12,000 Retiree Group Term Life (RGTL) policy for the retiree only.  In addition, at retirement, an employee may elect to add a Retiree Supplemental Group Term Life (RSGTL) policy up to $25,000 for them and/or eligible dependents.  To be eligible the individuals must meet certain medical standards.
• For more information on the RGTL and the RSGTL policies, please look at the Summary Plan Descriptions for each plan at www.dmba.com.  Those descriptions are found by going to “My Plans,” “Summary Plan Descriptions,” and then click on “Other Handbooks.”

Information on this page is for general reference only.  See the appropriate DMBA Handbook for more complete information on retirement program.