EARLY RETIREMENT

PROCEDURES:

1. Any certificated, administrative, classified management or confidential employees of the College of the Redwoods wishing to avail themselves of early retirement benefits shall, prior to January 31, write a letter of request to the President. This letter shall outline the facts relative to having met the minimum requirements of the program.

2. The President shall validate the candidate's claims regarding minimum qualifications within 10 days.

3. If the employee has been found qualified for participation in the early retirement program, the benefits shall commence on the first day of retirement.

BENEFITS:

1. The District will continue to provide medical and dental benefits to the retired employee and dependents until the employee reaches the age of 65 at no cost to the employee.

2. The professional medical, major medical, dental and vision benefits shall be consistent with those being received by current employees in the unit and their dependents including any expansion of benefits under the basic benefits program which is in existence at the time the employee retires.

The retired employee and dependents will not be eligible to receive new fringe benefit programs or plans with may accrue to them current employees who are on active employment status with the District at the time the new benefit goes into effect which were not an expansion of the basic benefit program in effect at the time of retirement.

3. If the employee predeceases the spouse and other dependents as identified below, the spouse or other dependents shall continue to receive these benefits until the spouse reaches the age of 65, but not longer than 10 years after the employee would have attained the age of 65.

4. Dependents other that the spouse shall have no rights of their own for benefits under this program but only as the employee and/or spouse qualify for such benefits.

5. District payment for participation in this program for the employee and/or spouse shall be terminated at the time that the employee reaches 65 or, if the employee is deceased, at the age or date as setforth for the spouse in paragraph 3 above. Upon the District discontinuance of premium payments, the employee and/or spouse may elect to continue
participation at their own expense provided there has been no break in coverage.

6. This plan or equal coverage when this plan is combined with other coverage for which the employee is qualified shall be effective until age 65. Such other coverage shall be, but is not limited to, Medicare A-B and coverage obtained or obtainable through other employment. If an option is available to an employee and/or spouse and the coverage is equal, the employee shall cooperate with the District to exercise the option provided such exercise does provide equal coverage.

7. For purposes of this program, the immediate family covered by this plan means only natural children, legally adopted children and spouse.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS:

1. Must be a certificated, administrative, classified management or confidential employee of the District.

2. Must have been a full-time employee for the 10 years immediately prior to such retirement.

3. Sabbatical leave or teacher exchange will count as eligible time within the 10-year period if accepted and used within the first 5 years of the 10-year period.

4. Leave without pay does not count toward part of the 10-year service requirement but does not constitute a break in the continuity of the 10- year requirement.

5. Paid sick leave counts toward the satisfaction of the 10-year requirement.

6. Extended sick leave(beyond the paid sick leave time) does not count toward a part of the 10-year service requirement but does not constitute a break in the continuity of the 10-year requirement.

7. Employees eligible for disability retirement are not eligible to participate in this plan.

8. The employee must have attained the minimum age of 55 by the first day of retirement under this plan.

9. Employee acceptance of this plan is irrevocable. Further, it is understood and agreed by the parties that this program is for the benefit of the employees in the unit who wish to retire from active employment with the District, and therefore the employee is responsible to ascertain the provisions and coverages of the various retirement plans without assistance from the District. It is also understood and agreed by the parties that the District shall have no responsibility other than as set forth herein, particularly with regard to ascertaining specifics of the various retirement plans available to employees in the unit who are retiring and with to take advantage of this program.

Adopted by Board of Trustees: March 3, 1980
Revised: March 1, 1981; August 5, 1985, November 1, 1987; June 4, 1990