How Do I:

Enroll in my University Retirement Plan

As a newly hired employee, you will receive a retirement packet from the Benefits & Wellness office. Our office will also invite you to attend a Retirement Orientation to learn about your retirement plans, tax-deferred savings accounts and the retirement vendors. A list of upcoming retirement orientation dates and times is available at: http://www.hrs.cmich.edu/calendars.htm. Please contact the Benefits and Wellness office at 989-774-3661 to schedule your retirement orientation.

You may enroll in the retirement plan at anytime; however, if you enroll within 60 days of your hire date, you will be eligible for retro contributions from CMU back to your date of hire. If you enroll in the retirement plan after the 60 day period, CMU will make contributions to your retirement plan from the date we receive your paperwork forward. There will be no adjustment for retro contributions back to the date of hire for enrollees after the 60 day period.

The steps to enroll include:

Complete the appropriate CMU retirement vendor allocation form.
The R-6 form should be completed by employees in these groups: Office Professional, hourly Public Broadcasting and Service Maintenance.
The R-8 form should be completed by employees in these groups: Hourly P & A & Supervisory Technical.
The R-10 form should be completed by employees in the following groups: Police, Regular Faculty, Salaried P & A, Salaried Public Broadcasting, Senior Officers, & Temp Faculty.
If you are enrolling in the Optional Retirement Plan, you must also complete the appropriate vendor enrollment application form(s).
The TIAA-CREF RA Enrollment Form should be completed by ORP participants who wish to invest with TIAA-CREF.
The Fidelity Enrollment Form should be completed by those who wish to invest with Fidelity.
You must complete both the TIAA-CREF RA Enrollment Form and Fidelity Enrollment Form if you wish to direct a portion of your university contribution to both vendors.
Please note that even if you had a TIAA-CREF or Fidelity account with anther employer, you will be required to complete a new vendor enrollment form to set-up these accounts with CMU.
Return both the vendor allocation and the appropriate vendor enrollment form(s) to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your forms to us at 989-774-1058.

To find out more about the university retirement plans and the retirement vendors, please visit our Website at: www.hrs.cmich.edu/retire/retire-plans.html

Change my university ORP contributions between vendors

Once you are enrolled in the ORP retirement plan, it is very easy to change the university contribution between either: TIAA-CREF and/or Fidelity Investments. These changes can be done at anytime, and the Benefits & Wellness office will process your request as of the next available pay period. Please follow these steps:

Download and complete the appropriate retirement vendor allocation form for your contribution level:
The R-6 form should be completed by employees who receive a 6% contribution (Office Professional, Service Maintenance, & hourly Public Broadcasting)
The R-8 form should be completed by employees who receive a 8% contribution (Supervisory Technical, hourly P&A)
The R-10 form should be completed by employees who receive a 10% contribution (Salaried P&A, Salaried Public Broadcasting, Senior Officer, Temp Faculty, Regular Faculty, & Police)
The R-12 form should be completed by employees who receive a 12% contribution (Salaried employees who started working prior to 1999)
If you have never started a CMU retirement account with a particular vendor, you must also complete the appropriate vendor enrollment application form.
If all of your university retirement contributions previously went to TIAA-CREF and now you wish to invest part or all of your contributions with Fidelity, then you must complete a Fidelity Enrollment Form.
If all of your university retirement contributions previously went to Fidelity and now you wish to invest part of all of your contributions to TIAA-CREF, then you must complete a TIAA-CREF RA Enrollment Form.
If you had part of your university contributions going to both TIAA-CREF and Fidelity, then you will not need to complete any vendor enrollment form(s).
Return the complete form(s) to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your forms to us at 989-774-1058.

To find out more about the university retirement plans and the retirement vendors, please visit our Website at: www.hrs.cmich.edu/retire/retire-plans.html

Start a New Tax-Deferred Investment in a 403(b) SRA and/or 457(b) GSRA

All benefit eligible CMU employees can start a supplemental 403(b) SRA and/or a group supplemental 457(b) GSRA tax-deferred investment at anytime. Participants in both the ORP and the MPSERS retirement plans can start one or both of these accounts to save pre-tax earnings for retirement.

To learn more about these accounts, please visit these links:

To start a 403(b) Supplemental Retirement Account:

Download and complete the 403(b) Salary Reduction Agreement form.
Download and complete the appropriate vendor application form:
The TIAA-CREF SRA Application form should be completed if you wish to invest with TIAA-CREF.
The Fidelity 403(b) Custodial Application form should be completed if you wish to invest with Fidelity Investments
You must complete both the TIAA-CREF SRA Application and the Fidelity 403(b) Custodial Application if you wish to invest with both vendors.
Return the complete form(s) to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your forms to us at 989-774-1058.

To start a 457(b) Group Supplemental Account:

Download and complete the 457(b) Salary Deferral Agreement form
Download and complete the TIAA-CREF 457(b) Deferred Compensation Enrollment Form
Return the complete form(s) to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your forms to us at 989-774-1058.

Maximize my Tax-Deferred Investments

Each year the IRS sets the maximum that participants can contribute to 403(b) SRA and 457(b) GSRA tax-deferred investments. The maximum you are allowed to contribute will depend on: the annual contribution limit, whether you are eligible for the over age 50 additional catch-up limit, and whether you are eligible for 15 years of Service catch-up limit. Current annual maximums can be viewed at: http://www.hrs.cmich.edu/retire/tax-def-maximums.htm.

Benefit eligible employees at CMU may maximize their contributions to both the 403(b) SRA and the 457(b) GSRA. The maximums for each of these plans are separate, so benefit eligible employees can contribute up to the maximum for each plan.

Our Tax-Deferred Investment Maximization Worksheet will help you calculate maximizing amounts for the rest of this calendar year. Once you have completed this worksheet and you have calculated the amount you wish to contribute per pay, please select the appropriate link to find out how to:

Start a Tax-Deferred Investment in a 403(b) SRA and/or 457(b) GSRA
Increase, decrease or stop contributions to an existing 403(b) SRA and/or 457(b)GSRA

You may also contact the Benefits & Wellness office at 989-774-3661 or benefits@cmich.edu for further assistance.

Increase, decrease, stop contributions or restart an existing 403(b) SRA and/or 457(b) GSRA

Once you have started a tax-deferred investment in a 403(b) SRA and/or 457(b) GSRA, it is very easy to increase, decrease, stop or restart your pre-tax contributions to these accounts. These changes can be done at anytime, and the Benefits & Wellness office will process your request as soon as allowed by that particular plan. Changes to the 403(b) SRA can be effective as early as the next available pay period. Changes to the 457(b) GSRA can be effective no earlier than the first pay of the following month from the forms are signed and received in our office.

To increase, decrease, stop or restart contributions to an existing 403(b) Supplemental Retirement Account:

Download and complete the entire 403(b) Salary Reduction Agreement form:
If you are increasing your contribution, please check “Increase” on the top of the form and put the new total $ amount or new total % you want deducted from your pay in Box 2. (please list the total amount, not just the amount of the increase)
If you are decreasing your contribution, please check “Decrease” on the top of the form and put the new total $ amount or new total % deducted from your pay in Box 2. (please list the total amount, not just the amount of the decrease)
If you are stopping your contribution, please check “Cancellation” on the top of the form and put zero in Box 2.
If you are restarting an existing CMU account that you had stopped previously, please check “Other” on the top of the form place a note that you are restarting your account. Then in Box 2, put the new total $ amount or new total % you want deducted from your pay.
Return the completed form with your signature and date to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your form to us at 989-774-1058.

To increase, decrease, stop or restart contributions to an existing 457(b) Group Supplemental Account*:

Download and complete the entire 457(b) Salary Deferral Agreement form:
If you are increasing your contribution, please check the “Increase” on the top of the form and put the new total % you want deducted from your pay in Box 2. (please list the total %, not just the amount of the increase)
If you are decreasing your contribution, please check “Decrease” on the top of the form and put the new total % deducted from your pay in Box 2. (please list the total %, not just the amount of the decrease)
If you are stopping your contribution, please check “Cancellation” on the top of the form and put “zero” in Box 2.
If you are restarting an existing CMU account that you had stopped previously, please check “Other” on the top of the form place a note that you are restarting your account. Then in Box 2, put the new total % you want deducted from your pay.
Return the completed form with your signature and date to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your form to us at 989-774-1058.

*Please note that the earliest the 457(b) GSRA can be changed is the first pay of the month following the date the completed form is received by the Benefits & Wellness office.

Change my 403(b) SRA contributions between vendors

Once you have started a voluntary tax-deferred investment in a 403(b) SRA, it is very easy to change your contributions between either: TIAA-CREF and/or Fidelity Investments. These changes can be done at anytime, and the Benefits & Wellness office will process your request as of the next available pay period. Please follow these steps:

Download and complete the entire 403(b) Salary Reduction Agreement form:
Check “New Allocation Between Vendors” at the top of the form
Complete box 1
In Box 2, you must enter the effective pay date, and the total amount or % that should be deducted from your pay check.
In Box 3, you must enter how much of your total amount or % should go to each vendor
Sign and date the bottom of the form
If you have never started a 403(b) SRA with a particular vendor at CMU, you must also complete the appropriate vendor enrollment application form.
If all of your 403(b) SRA contributions previously went to TIAA-CREF and now you wish to invest part or all of your contributions with Fidelity, then you must complete a Fidelity 403(b) Custodial Application
If all of your 403(b) SRA contributions previously went to Fidelity and now you wish to invest part of all of your contributions to TIAA-CREF, then you must complete a TIAA-CREF SRA Application
If you had part of your university contributions going to both TIAA-CREF and Fidelity, then you will not need to complete any vendor enrollment form(s).
Return the completed, signed and dated form(s) to the Benefits & Wellness office in Rowe 108. You may also fax your forms to us at 989-774-1058.

Change my investment allocations with TIAA-CREF and/or Fidelity accounts

Once you started a university retirement account(s) or a voluntary tax-deferred investment(s) with TIAA-CREF or Fidelity Investments, it is very easy to change how your money is allocated among the various investment accounts and/or mutual funds. These allocation changes should be done directly with the vendor (TIAA-CREF or Fidelity) and can be done at any time.

One option is to call the vendor toll free and discuss your options with a representative:

To contact TIAA-CREF, call 1-800-842-2776

To contact Fidelity Investments, call 1-800-343-0860

Investment allocation changes may also be made by logging into your account online through the vendors Website:

TIAA-CREF – http://enroll.tiaa-cref.org/cmich/

Fidelity Investments – www.mysavingsatwork.com

*Please note that if you are trying to access your accounts online for the first time, you may find it easiest to contact the vendor by phone to have a representative walk you through the process.

Update/change my address or my beneficiaries with my retirement vendor

Please remember to keep your address information and beneficiaries with your retirement vendors updated as much as possible. You can contact the vendor by phone to find out how to make these changes when necessary or you can download these forms directly from their Websites.

TIAA-CREF

Make address or beneficiary changes by going to the TIAA-CREF website at http://www.tiaa-cref.org/ Then log in to your account, click on "My Profile" and select the appropriate link.

Or Contact Customer Service at: 1-800-842-2776

Fidelity Investments

Customer Service: 1-800-343-0860

Address and Beneficiary Change Forms: http://www.mysavingsatwork.com/atwork/1104818723638/1104818723678/1118753886963.htm#ContentBegin

MPSERS

Customer Service: 1-800-381-5111

Address Change Form: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/r357x_15900_7.pdf

Beneficiary Nomination Form: http://www.michigan.gov/documents/r315c_15885_7.pdf

Contact Retirement Vendors

TIAA-CREF

Customer Service: 1-800-842-2776

Website: http://enroll.tiaa-cref.org/cmich/

Fidelity Investments

Customer Service: 1-800-343-0860

Website: www.mysavingsatwork.com

MPSERS

Customer Service: 1-800-381-5111

Website: http://www.mi.gov/orsschools

Find out how much if any vacation pay off I will receive at time of retirement?

Employees must check their employee group handbook and/or contract to see how much time is expected of them to give notice of their intent to terminate/retire from their position.
Employees who do not give the required amount of notice will not be eligible to receive their unused vacation payoff.
Employees must check their employee group handbook and/or contract to see what the maximum vacation hours are that will be paid off at time of retirement/termination.
When vacation time is paid off, employee will be taxed at a higher tax because it is a lump sum payoff amount.
Employees are eligible to tax defer any lump sum monies to their supplemental retirement accounts (403b or 457b plans with TIAA-Cref and Fidelity Investments).
Be sure to check with the Benefits office during your retirement preparation meeting find out how much you will receive and to do the paper work for tax deferring if needed.

Am I eligible for a Retirement Service Award?

Only employees who have been employed prior to March 1st, 1976 in the following employee groups: Regular faculty, senior officers, professional & administrative – salaried, broadcasting employees may be eligible for a retirement service award.
The employee must meet the following retirement criteria:

Have reached age sixty (60) with ten years of service at CMU; or
Have completed thirty (30) years of service at CMU, at any age: or
Qualify for disability retirement, at any age, with at least ten (10) years of CMU service; or
Die while employed, at any age (RSA paid to beneficiary)

Please check your employee handbook/contract for details on the calculation of the retirement award. This calculation varies by employee group. If you have any questions or need more information, please call the Benefit’s office at 989-774-3661 or benefits@cmich.edu.