Retirement

[Iris]

What does anyone know regarding the specifics of retirement?

How long must you have worked with the company and at what level? (Part time, full time, seasonal, etc)

How old must you be in order to retire?

What benefits do you retain at retirement?

I can't find my company handbook, does anyone have theirs and if so, what does it say?

I am not asking specifically about a pension plan, I have that information already and understand about being vested.

I just need some general information, that is current and correct regarding retirement as it relates to Disney Store Castmembers.

I tried to find the information on the Disney Team Module of the Cast Portal but it only spoke of pension plans and such.

 

[shariskates]

Here's what I know and it could've changed..... If you've been with the company for 10-19 years and are at least 55, you can retire with a bronze pass. If you are there for 20 years and are at least 55, you retire with a silver.

That's all I know and it could've changed by now...

=)

Sharon

 

[jfap]

I may be wrong, but was under the impression that those benefits only apply to full-time castmembers.

 

[mickey4ver]

I was always under the impression that you had to have acquired so many hours per year of work to qualify for any type of "retirement" and also be vested which followed along with working so many hours per year.

I really don't think we as part-timers, even after many years qualify for anything if we are not vested or have worked the required hours over the years.

 

[mickey4ver]

Originally posted by jfap
I may be wrong, but was under the impression that those benefits only apply to full-time castmembers.

We posted our thoughts at almost the same time, and what you said (you said it much better LOL) is what I'm thinking I've been told. The most we can hope for is a nice placque with our name on it

 

[aeryn]

When I first started with The Disney Stores in 1997, even part timers had some sort of "retirement" benefits (silver pass, whatnot). Packed somewhere I have the original blue handbook that states it. At some point over the years, it was changed tho' I'd bet a large amount of Disney Dollars that they never announced the change.

Par for the course with Disney and communications with the Cast

 

[BermudaJ]

I am a part-time TDS Castmember and just today received my enrollment notice for the retirement plan. It said that because I completed one year and 1000 hours of service, I am eligible to participate in the retirement plan. It then states how to go about enrolling. It also says that in order to earn a company provided benefit, I must meet one of the following requirements: completion of four yrs of credited service during which I contributed; or contribution of a total of $582.40. The amount of the contribution is $0.07 per each credited hour of service up to 40 hours per week. By electing to participate in the plan, I must authorize the company to deduct the required contribution from my weekly pay.

It's funny how this thread just started recently and I got my letter today.

Janice

 

[PatMcDuck]

I signed up for this about 6 months ago, before all the poop hit the fan about the stores being up for sale.........

What is a bronze pass?

 

[jilljill]

I have never heard of this retirement benefit, and I have been with the company over 7 years. How does one go about getting the info? Also, is this different from the stock purchase plan?

 

[eeyore0062]

This is the information I found:

Retirement Benefits - You are eligible to receive a monthly retirement benefit if you have at least five years of vesting service with the Company or one year of service at age 65. You can start receiving reduced payments anytime between the ages of 55 and 65, or full benefits beginning at age 65.
If you leave the Company before you are vested, no benefits are payable (except refunds of any contributions plus interest, if applicable).


In the handbook, it says nothing about a silver or bronze pass, it only says that you will receive complimentary ticket media 2 times per year after retirement. So, I don't know if things have changed.

I don't know if this helps, but it is the only thing I could find.

 

[doombuggy]

I can chime in a bit here b/c I have been in the pension & 401(k) business for 12 years.

The government standard for a "year of service" is 1000 hours. As BermudaJ mentioned, she received a notice that she worked 1000 hours, and had a year of service (12 consecutive months), so she qualifies to get into the plans. I, on the other hand have worked for 7 years, but have never worked at least 1000 hours in any year, so I do not qualify. Right now, BermudaJ has 1 year of vested service. If she does not work 1000 hours in the next year, she will not get another year of vested service, even though she still worked during that year. In other words, you have to work at least 1000 hours (which is about 20 hours per week) in order to get in, and then you need to keep that up for the 4 years, or whatever the time limit is, to become fully vested in the contributions that are placed in your retirement account by the company.

Rikersmom or shirley38 could put in their two cents, as i think they are both in the pension plan. Ladies?

 

[Iris]

Hey all, thanks for all the info.

I guess I am more interested in the discount benefits(what is a bronze pass anyway?) than the pension.

I understand about being vested and yes, you must complete 1000 hours of work in one year to qualify. We have some people in our store that are eligible for the pension plan because they have been vested at some point.

I guess I want to know if you have worked at least 10 years and are over 55, can you retire and receive some discount benefits such as free entry into parks, discounts on passes and purchases, comp tickets? If this is a possibility, would you have had to work a certain amount of hours per week to qualify? Is it only for full time CMs?

 

[TexDis]

Iris,

Find out who your field generalist is and/or contact HR. They should be able to answer all these questions for you. Your managers should be able to give you this info.

 

[Disney7G330601]

I was checking out this new thread about retirement even tho I am only 25. But I was reading your posts about benifits and stuff you are eligible for when putting in 1000 hrs of service in a yr. This brought me to a question:

I have been part-time castmember for 7 years going on my 8th in October. I know I have atleast put in 1000 for the past 2 or 3 years maybe even for the past 4 yrs that I have been with the company. Do I qualify for any kind of benifits putting in all that time over the past few years?... or do I just get a pat on the back? lol.

Oh yeah heres another question!... good thing I read all these posts.....

Can I take part in a 401k plan being that I put alot of hours in per year? I average almost 20 hrs per week and then some when it gets to that busy time of year.

Please fill me in folks!

Thanx!

 

[eeyore0062]

They sent me a notice earlier this year saying that I was eligiable for the the retirement plan, since I had worked over 1000 hours this past year. I sure wasn't expecting it. So, I think when it kicks in, they let you know.

As for the perks, I know that when you retire, you get a different ID that states you are a retiree from WDW... not sure about TDS, which entitles you to your 35% discount, but I don't know if it will still let you in the park. I also am not aware if you still get the silver pass as a certain point. I know that used to be the case, but not sure if it is still in effect. Also, I know they no longer offer group health insurance to retirees, like they used to. Hasn't been in effect since around 1994.

I will ask around and see what I can find out.

 

[ladyandtramp]

We just had TWO castmembers go through this at our store.
They had reached the "10 years" and were "over 55", and per their original CM "blue book" (cast policies booklet) were eligible for retirement, but per the company now, they are not!

One of this CMs wrote letters to all sorts of people, the issue was raised through the SM to the DM to the RM and on up the ladder.
Michael Eisner even called her (can you believe this -- and yes, it was really him!) saying he had gotten her letter and would be sure that the HR department answered all her questions.
All for nothing.

The retirement benefits are designed for FT CMs.

PT CMs must maintain a certain number of hours PER YEAR in order to qualify. The "10 years of service" is 10 years FULL TIME -- so figure that out at a Part Time rate. That means 15 - 20 years.

I laughed when I too got my letter this past month. The letter has very little information in it really -- it mentions you must contribute ".07 / hr" to earn benefits -- but did you notice that it does NOT say what benefits? You need to call a # to find out the details. It sounds to me like this is purely a 401k-ish plan to me.
And did any one calculate how many hours it will take at .07 to reach that magical $582? 8,320 hours. !!