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1st appeared 29 March 2000

Retirement Credit Plan Proposed for Medical Center Employees

The University of California has developed a proposal to provide service credit in the University of California Retirement Program (UCRP) to UCSF Stanford employees accepting jobs at UCSF Medical Center effective April 1.

The proposal would allow employees to trade their employer-provided benefits under the UCSF Stanford retirement programs for service credit in UC's pension plan.

The proposal requires approval from the Internal Revenue Service and the Department of Labor, the two federal agencies that enforce rules governing retirement plans. The proposal attempts to balance the considerations of all interested parties and has been presented to the unions that will represent UCSF employees.

At the time of the merger in November 1997, employees could choose between the UCSF Stanford Staff Pension Program (SPP), a "defined benefit plan" not requiring contributions from the employee, and the UCSF Stanford Retirement Plan, a "defined contribution" 403(b) plan that includes a 5 percent base contribution from the employer and the ability for employees to contribute up to 4 percent with an employer-matching contribution. Under the proposal, the benefit exchange process would vary, depending on the plan in which an employee participated.

• Staff Pension Program (SPP): Employees covered by the SPP would have UCSF Stanford SPP benefits transferred to UCRP in exchange for UCRP service credit for the period of employment at UCSF Stanford.

• 403(b) Retirement Plan: Employees who participated in the UCSF Stanford Retirement Plan would transfer all retirement plan benefits, including the employer and employee contributions, to UC's 403(b) program once the UC 403(b) Plan can accept such benefits. They would have two options. One option would be to exchange the accumulated benefits associated with the 5 percent employer base contribution for UCRP service credit for the period employed at UCSF Stanford. The other option would be to leave all benefits in the 403(b) plan and forgo UCRP service credit.

It is expected to take several months or more before UC receives responses from the IRS and labor department regarding this complex proposal. Employees who have any questions regarding UC's retirement plan should call Human Resources at 514-1100 or send an email message to hrtransition@hr.ucsf.edu.

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