CONTENTS
Effective January 1, 2012 ESHB 1981 (Chapter 47, Laws of 2011) imposes restrictions on the number of hours a retiree from a Department of Retirement Systems (DRS) plan can work in a state government or state higher education job during a calendar year before the employee's retirement pension payments are suspended for the remainder of the year. The law applies to all retirees, whether currently working post-retirement or not. For more information about post-retirement employment, see the DRS website.
Retirees are solely responsible for tracking their hours worked and determining the effect on their pension payments if they continue to work beyond their post-retirement employment limit. The retiree re-employment limits on hours worked before pension payments are suspended may affect a retiree's desire to continue to work beyond the allowed limits. .
It is University policy to comply with Washington State law governing the reemployment of Department of Retirement System (DRS) retirees, and to require that all DRS retirees seeking UW employment follow the normal job application and referral procedures. It is a violation of state law and UW policy for there to be any pre-retirement oral or written agreement between individuals of a DRS plan (PERS, TRS, SERS, LEOFF, or WSPRS) and any state employer which results in the individual being hired into a UW position. Violation of the law results in nullification of the individual’s retirement. Criminal and monetary penalties may also apply.
Retirees may apply for any open position at the UW, and departments are no longer required to obtain special approvals to hire a DRS retiree. Departments should follow normal hiring practices for the type of position available.
More detail is available at the DRS Retiree Return to Work web page.
Effective January 1, 2012, follow normal UW employment processes if you wish to extend an employment offer to a current DRS or UWRP retiree, regardless of the appointment type. In addition, completion of the following mandatory when employing a DRS-plan retiree. Send the completed forms to your employment specialist:
DRS plan retirees may be appointed to hourly/temporary positions by following the normal temporary employment process.
This page explains retiree reemployment requirements, however by state law there are no guarantees of post-retirement employment at the UW. The information is provided to assist you in understanding the rules that apply to the post-retirement employment of DRS plan retirees. However, if there is any discrepancy between this information and the current DRS rules, the DRS rules will prevail.
Rehire a Retiree
Topics