Through your membership in the UFT, you are lucky to count yourself among the minority of Americans who still have a defined-benefit pension that guarantees a lifetime annuity.

Upon retirement, you will receive regular payments based on a formula that takes years of service, salary and age into account. You don’t have to worry about the ups and downs of the stock market that affect 401(k) savings plans. With a defined-benefit pension, your pension benefit stays the same throughout your retirement.

In addition to a defined-benefit pension, eligible UFT members may participate in a low-fee supplemental savings plan called the Tax-Deferred Annuity program through the Teachers’ Retirement System or the Board of Education Retirement System. This money is deducted from your paycheck before you pay taxes and reduces your gross taxable income. You don’t pay taxes on investment earnings until you withdraw the money.

Pension workshops

The UFT Pension Department offers an array of services to inform members of their retirement benefits and help them prepare for retirement.

The Pension Department’s workshops, which are offered throughout the year, are designed to be relevant to all UFT members, from those who have just started their careers to those who are thinking about retirement. You may attend as many of these workshops as you wish.

The union offers remote pension clinics for members in Tier 4 or Tier 6. These two-hour clinics review pension milestones, final average salary calculations and CAR days for members in that tier.

This fall, members may participate in other workshops on these specific topics:

• TDA and pension options at retirement
• Medicare and turning 65
• Health benefits at retirement for members not yet eligible for Medicare
• Annual Benefits Statement and death benefits
• Financial wellness

The UFT Pension Department also offers “Your Roadmap to Retirement,” a pre-retirement workshop series. At these three 75-minute online sessions, members receive a comprehensive introduction to the retirement planning process. They learn what to expect in terms of health care coverage and how to make sure their money keeps working for them after retirement, and they also get planning advice from legal experts.

You will receive invitations to these workshops via email. You can also find them on the events calendar on the UFT website. You must pre-register.

Pension consultations

UFT members may request a one-on-one preliminary or final pension consultation with a UFT pension consultant. To make an appointment, call the union at 212-331-6311

At a preliminary consultation, which may be at a UFT borough office or by phone, the pension consultant will go over important topics, such as designating beneficiaries, how you will be compensated for any remaining CAR days in your bank at retirement, pension loans, UFT Welfare Fund benefits when you retire, and TDA and pension options at retirement.

The preliminary consultation can take place at any point in your career. You may request more than one preliminary consultation over the course of your career.

You are entitled to only one final consultation during your career, so most members schedule that appointment during their final months of work. You will need your Annual Benefits Statement and your Quarterly Account Statement available during your consultation.

During this final 45-minute pension consultation, you will:

• Receive an estimate of your retirement allowance.
• Find out about using your pension plan to protect your spouse or other beneficiaries.
• Learn about withdrawing TDA contributions, where permissible, at retirement.
• Receive assistance in completing the retirement application.
• Learn about health and UFT Welfare Fund benefits at retirement.
• Receive answers to all of your other retirement questions.

The union fought hard to secure valuable retirement benefits for members. The UFT Pension Department is committed to educating members about their benefits so they can take full advantage of them and make decisions that are right for them.

This column is compiled by Tom Brown, Victoria Lee and Christina McGrath, teacher-members of the New York City Teachers’ Retirement Board.