Insurance/Retirement Committee

RETIREMENT

The most important fact to remember when you prepare for your retirement from Northwest Airlines is that you must be at least 55 years old to be considered a 'retiree'. If you are not age 55 or older, then you will be deemed a 'resignation', not a retirement. You also need to be age 55 in order to receive passes.

Another important fact to remember is that you have to have 23 years of benefit service to receive the Company subsidized medical insurance.

In addition, you must have 27 years of benefit service to receive the 3% per year reduction under the age of 62. If you do not have 27 years of service, your pension will be reduced by 7% per year for every year under the age of 62. That means if you retire at age 55 without the 27 years of service, you will lose 49% of your accrued pension benefit.

To get an idea of what your individual retirement benefit might be, visit the NWA RADAR website. After you log in, go to 'Pay and Benefits'. Scroll down to 'Pension Plans' and click. Click on 'Pension Plans for Contract Employees' and then click on 'Your Current Pension Benefit'. You can view the amount of your accrued pension and you can also see your benefit and vested years of service. Print out this information and if you have questions, call the NWA Pension Benefit Department at 1-800-NWA-BENS to review or confirm your benefits.

If you have questions after speaking with the Benefits Department, please feel free to give me a call regarding retirement issues.

Kathy Dunham
MEC Retirement Chair
E-Mail: kdunham@nwaafa.org
Phone: 952-241-4127

Latest Insurance News

New Supplemental Insurance Being offered by the AFA-CWA

Dear Members:

AFA is pleased to announce a new supplemental benefits program for its members at Northwest Airlines. Members will have the opportunity to enroll during the upcoming on-site enrollment in the following supplemental benefit plans. which are being offered this year for the first time.

Accident Insurance
- 24-hour coverage (on & off-job) with no health questions or offsets.
- Benefits for members, spouses and children.

Critical Illness Insurance
- Benefits paid directly to you, regardless of all other insurance including medical insurance.
- Wellness benefit pays $50 per year for procedures such as mammograms and pap smears.

Universal Life Insurance
- Coverage for members, spouses, dependent children and grandchildren.
- A $25,000 child or grandchild policy for as low as $2.01 per week.

These programs are available through the convenience of payroll deduction and are portableshould you leave Northwest Airlines for any reason.  Additionally, coverage is available on a guaranteed issue basis for members (no health /underwriting questions).

Benefit counselors from National Group Protection will be onsite to provide information and enroll interested members.  You must see a representative in person during the enrollment period. You will be notified by your local about the date(s) that counselors will be available at your base.

These plans are offered by National Group Protection (NGP).  NGP is a union shop and has been a leader in the design and implementation of union-sponsored benefit plans for over 30 years.

Please click on the NWA AFA Supplemental Benefits Insurance Brochure on the right of this web page for complete details.

Posted by Gov Affairs on 03/21 at 04:38 PM