Comments on: Another fun day at Human Resources

By: Orinda

Orinda — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 19:50:06 +0000

I also work for Arizona State (which, unless I’m mistaken, has got to be the Great Desert University). In my experience, the people in HR don’t know anything other than what’s posted on their website. That is the sum total of their understanding. If they know anything else, they’re not authorized to tell people.

You have to go to the state offices to get straight answers, assuming any of them are still staffed. Assuming you can figure out which is the right state office to ask.

Good luck!

By: funny

funny — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 12:13:31 +0000

As it develops, this is all another tempest in a teapot, blown up by the incompetence of GDU’s HR staff. What the woman told me was 100 percent wrong. I have an update to write…

By: Revanche

Revanche — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 07:31:15 +0000

Ok, I’m almost completely confused, but what I do know is that my employment, coverage, benefits and all ended on June 30th. I was still eligible for COBRA + ARRA (subsidy) so I’m not sure what the fuss between the 27th, the 30th and the 31st is. What I mean is, if the boilerplate/mandate states that your coverage has to end before the 31st instead of the 30th, then why end employment on the 27th? If it helps at all, I can send you the PDF of the information they sent me about COBRA after the canning. Some is obviously specific to my former employer, but some might be a little helpful in untangling your legalese? Let me know if you want it.

By: funny

funny — Sat, 10 Oct 2009 00:18:48 +0000

Yes. The money that’s taken away from you isn’t exactly lost & gone forever…at least, that’s my understanding. As we know, my understanding is worth what you paid for it.

If I’m following what various functionaries have explained, the right hand takes and the left hand returns. The money that’s subtracted from your SS because you earn “too much” apparently is credited toward your benefit at “full” retirement age. I gather that at that time, they rejigger the payment, figuring in the amounts they’ve taken back during the time you were working. Thus it could increase your “full” payment, although one CSR remarked that it would not bring it up to the amount you would have had if you had delayed starting SS at your “full retirement” age.

Your colleague would have reached “full” age at 65 or 66. This means that now she or he can draw down SS with no penalty at all for any amount earned in the workplace. It’s gravy, and could (in theory) be stashed into one’s savings instruments to support one in one’s old age. Or used to spend the summer in the south of France.

Another little-known factoid I’ve heard is that you can repay the amount that was paid out to you between an “early” start and your attainment of “full” retirement age. When you do this, a) the government returns the taxes you paid on it, and b) SS will reset your payments to the amount you’re entitled to just as though you had never started early.

By: frugalscholar

frugalscholar — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 22:04:08 +0000

I hardly understand any of this stuff. I have a colleague who is still working at 67. I swear it’s because it seems easier to keep going than to figure out all the HR/SS/etc stuff.

One thing I THINK I read–could it be true?–is that the SS penalty isn’t permanent–you get the money back at a later date. I forget where I read this. Perhaps you could check it out–it seems too good to be true.