FAQs

Q: Who is responsible for tracking my hours and salary after retirement?

A. Both you and your employer are responsible for tracking the number of hours you work and your salary. Record-keeping forms indicating your hourly and salary limits will be sent to you each school year when you return to work after retirement for a third-party employer. It is important to check with your employer to make sure you both are tracking consistently and that your records agree. If a discrepancy exists between your record and your employer’s, we consider your employer’s record to be official.

Q. Does the $15,000 salary limit ever apply to work for third-party providers performed at PSRS-covered school districts?

A. No. The only positions PSRS retirees may hold for a third-party employer that are subject to legal limitations are positions that require a DESE-issued certificate, and therefore this would not apply. Those positions are subject to a 550-hour per school year limit on hours and a 50% salary limit.

Q. Can I work in a non-certificated position under this provision and also work at a covered school for a third-party employer in a position that requires a DESE-issued certificate?

A. Yes. For example, a retired teacher can work in a non-certificated position at a covered employer as a school bus driver with the $15,000 salary limit and no limit on hours, and also work as a substitute teacher for a third-party employer at a PSRS-covered school, which is subject to the 550-hour/50% of salary limits.

Q. If I exceed the working after retirement limits, when do my benefits stop?

A. You forfeit your benefits effective the month in which you exceed a limit. Benefits do not resume until your employment ends or a new school year begins on July 1. For example, if you exceed the 550-hour limit on April 10, you forfeit your April benefit payment. If you end your employment in April, your benefit payments resume in May. If your employment continues, your benefit payments will resume the month following your employment end date or at the start of a new school year.

Q. Can signing a contract as part of a retirement incentive cause me to lose retirement benefits?

A. Yes. For a period of one month from your PSRS retirement date, you cannot be under contract for employment, or have an agreement to continue employment, at a PSRS-covered employer in any capacity. This includes retirement incentives or separation agreements that require you to work or volunteer in any capacity after retirement in return for salary, including paid health insurance benefits. If you sign such a contract or have such an agreement, you are not considered to have properly terminated your employment and are not eligible to receive PSRS benefits.