V. PLAN IDENTIFICATION
AND YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS
Plan
Name and Address:
CWA/ITU
Negotiated Pension Plan
831
S. Nevada Ave., Ste. 120
Colorado
Springs, CO 80903
Telephone:
719-473-3862
Toll free:
877-429-2488
Fax:
719-473-3134
E-mail:
cwaitu@aol.com
Web Site:
www.cwaitu.com
Plan Sponsor:
Board of Trustees (use Plan address)
Union Trustees
Employer Trustees
William J. Boarman, Chairman
Martin P. Dillon, Secretary
Robert C. Maida, Jr.
Theodore R. Rilea, Jr.
Arthur DeIanni
James W. Artz
Daniel J. Farberman
Plan Administrator:
John Foss (use Plan address)
Employer Identification
Number (EIN): 13-6212879, Plan
Number: 001
Agent for Service
Service may be made upon the Plan
of Legal Process:
Administrator or any Trustee.
A. Plan Operations.
The CWA/ITU Negotiated Pension Plan is a multiemployer, defined
benefit pension plan. The Plan's fiscal records are maintained on
a calendar year ending December 31. The Plan is administered by a
joint Board of Trustees comprised of four Union Trustees and four Employer
Trustees. The Board of Trustees may amend the Plan (including changing
the pension formula) and has discretion to interpret the Plan. The
Board's decisions are final and binding.
Participating employers contribute to this Plan in accordance with
written collective bargaining agreements. The Plan can only accept
employee contributions under the limited circumstances described in the
Plan document. You may obtain information from the Plan Office as
to whether a particular employer or local union sponsors the Plan and,
if so, that employer or local union's address.
Benefits are provided from employer contributions and the Plan's investments.
The Plan's assets are held in trust by the Bank of New York, and by other
investment institutions selected by the Board. A list of Plan investments
is available from the Plan Office.
B. Rights under ERISA. As
a participant in the CWA/ITU Negotiated Pension Plan, you are entitled
to certain rights and protections under the Employee Retirement Income
Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). ERISA provides that plan participants
shall be entitled to:
Receive Information About Your Plan and
Benefits
– Examine, without charge, at the Plan Office,
all documents governing the plan, including collective bargaining agreements,
and a copy of the latest annual report (Form 5500 Series) filed by the
plan with the U.S. Department of Labor and available at the Public Disclosure
Room of the Employee Benefits Security Administration.
– Obtain, upon written request to the plan administrator,
copies of documents governing the operation of the plan, including the
documents listed above. The administrator may make a reasonable charge
for the copies.
– Receive a summary of the plan's annual financial
report. The plan administrator is required by law to furnish each
participant with a copy of this summary annual report.
– Obtain a free statement telling you whether
you have a right to receive a pension at normal retirement age (age 65)
and if so, what your benefits would be at normal retirement age if you
stop working under the plan now. If you do not have a right to a
pension, the statement will tell you how many more years you have to work
to get a right to a pension.
Prudent Actions by Plan Fiduciaries
In addition to creating rights for plan participants,
ERISA imposes duties upon the people who are responsible for the operation
of the employee benefit plan. The people who operate your plan, called
“fiduciaries” of the plan, have a duty to do so prudently and in the interest
of you and other plan participants and beneficiaries. No one, including
your employer, your union, or any other person, may fire you or otherwise
discriminate against you in any way to prevent you from obtaining a pension
benefit or exercising your rights under ERISA.
Enforce Your Rights
If your claim for a pension benefit is denied
or ignored, in whole or in part, you have a right to know why this was
done, to obtain copies of documents relating to the decision without charge,
and to appeal any denial, all within certain time schedules. Under
ERISA, there are steps you can take to enforce those rights. For
instance, if you request a copy of plan documents or the latest annual
report from the plan and do not receive them within 30 days, you may file
suit in a Federal court. In such a case, the court may require the
plan administrator to provide the materials and pay you up to $110 a day
until you receive the materials, unless the materials were not sent because
of reasons beyond the control of the administrator. If you have a
claim for benefits which is denied or ignored, in whole or in part, you
may file suit in a state or Federal court. In addition, if you disagree
with the plan's decision or lack thereof concerning the qualified status
of a domestic relations order, you may file suit in Federal court.
If it should happen that plan fiduciaries misuse the plan's money, or if
you are discriminated against for asserting your rights, you may seek assistance
from the U. S. Department of Labor, or you may file suit in a Federal court.
The court will decide who should pay court costs and legal fees.
If you are successful, the court may order the person you have sued to
pay these costs and fees. If you lose, the court may order you to
pay these costs and fees, for example, if it finds your claim frivolous.
Assistance with Your Questions
If you have any questions about your plan, you
should contact the plan administrator. If you have any questions
about this statement or about your rights under ERISA, or if you need assistance
in obtaining documents from the plan administrator, you should contact
the nearest office of the Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA),
U.S. Department of Labor, listed in your telephone directory or the Division
of Technical Assistance and Inquiries, EBSA, U.S. Department of Labor,
200 Constitution Avenue N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210. You may also
obtain certain publications about your rights and responsibilities under
ERISA by calling the publications hotline of the EBSA.
C. The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.
Your
pension benefits under this multiemployer plan are insured by the Pension
Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC), a Federal insurance agency.
Under the multiemployer plan program, the PBGC provides financial assistance
through loans to plans that are insolvent. A multiemployer plan is
considered insolvent if the plan is unable to pay benefits (at least equal
to the PBGC’s guaranteed benefit limit) when due.
The maximum benefit that the PBGC guarantees is
set by law. Under the multiemployer program, the PBGC guarantee equals
a participant's years of service multiplied by (1) 100% of the first $11
of the monthly benefit accrual rate and (2) 75% of the next $33.
The PBGC’s maximum guarantee limit is $35.75 per month times a participant's
years of service. For example, the maximum annual guarantee for a
retiree with 30 years of service would be $12,870. The PBGC guarantee
generally covers: (1) normal and early retirement benefits; (2) disability
benefits if you become disabled before the plan becomes insolvent; and
(3) certain benefits for your survivors. The PBGC guarantee generally does
not cover: (1) benefits greater than the maximum guaranteed amount
set by law; (2) benefit increases and new benefits based on plan provisions
that have been in place for fewer than 5 years at the earlier of:
(i) the date the plan terminates or (ii) the time the plan becomes insolvent;
(3) benefits that are not vested because you have not worked long enough;
(4) benefits for which you have not met all of the requirements at the
time the plan becomes insolvent; and (5) non-pension benefits, such as
health insurance, life insurance, certain death benefits, vacation pay,
and severance pay.
For more information about the PBGC and the benefits it guarantees,
ask your plan administrator or contact the PBGC’s Technical Assistance
Division, 1200 K Street, N.W., Suite 930, Washington, D.C. 20005-4026 or
call 202-326-4000 (not a toll-free number). TTY/TDD users may call
the federal relay service toll-free at 1-800-877-8339 and ask to be connected
to 202-326-4000. Additional information about the PBGC’s pension
insurance program is available through the PBGC’s website on the Internet
at http://www.pbgc.gov.
D. Plan Termination Information. The
Plan may be terminated by the Board of Trustees only with the consent of
the union and a majority of the contributing employers. In such event,
all of the assets of the Plan shall be used for the exclusive benefit of
participants and pensioners and allocated in the following order:
1. Each pensioner, surviving spouse or beneficiary receiving
a pension shall be entitled to a share equal to the actuarial present value
of the remaining pension.
2. Each Participant who has reached the age of 65 and
is eligible for a Normal Pension shall be entitled to a share equal to
the actuarial present value of that pension.
3. Each other Participant shall be entitled to a share
equal to the total of all employer contributions received by the Plan on
the Participant's behalf.
4. Each Participant who has reached the age of 60 and
is eligible for an Early Pension shall be entitled to a share equal to
the actuarial present value of that pension less the Participant's share
computed under 3.
5. Each other Participant shall be entitled to a share
equal to the actuarial present value of that Participant's pension less
the Participant's share computed under 3.