Last Updated: September 23, 2005
1. EMPLOYEE BENEFITS
Eligible employees in the Wachusett Regional School District are provided a wide range of benefits. A number of the programs, such as participation in mandated Retirement Systems, Social Security, Workers' Compensation, and Unemployment Insurance, cover all employees in the manner prescribed by law. Some benefit programs require contributions from the employee.
Benefits eligibility is dependent upon a variety of factors, including the employee's classification and the employment contract or collectively bargained agreement. The employee’s supervisor or the Office of Administrative Services can identify the programs for which you are eligible.
The following benefit programs are available to eligible employees:
Auto Mileage |
Meal Allowances |
Benefit Conversion at Termination |
Military Leave* |
Bereavement Leave* |
Paid Holidays |
Paternity/Adoption/Child Rearing Leave* |
Parking |
Educational Leave* |
Pension |
Educational Financial Assistance |
Personal Leave* |
Family Medical Leave |
Sick Leave* |
Health Insurance |
Special Leave* |
Jury Duty Leave* |
Tax-Sheltered Annuities |
Life Insurance |
Travel Allowances |
Long Term Disability Insurance |
Vacation Benefits |
Maternity Leave |
Workers’ Compensation |
* Defined in Section D, Leave Benefits.
2. AUTOMOBILE MILEAGE
If during the course of duty an employee is required to utilize their own vehicle to attend a meeting or function, after receiving authorization for travel from their supervisor or building administrator, employees shall be paid at the rate determined by School Committee Policy unless an individual collective bargaining agreement or individual employment contract states otherwise. Tolls and parking fees are reimbursable upon presentation of a receipt at face value. Mileage reimbursements should be submitted monthly; no submission(s) shall be processed for payments that are submitted after July 31 for the prior fiscal year.
The Wachusett Regional School District is closed for business on the following holidays:
- New Year's Day (January 1)
- Martin Luther King Day (third Monday in January)
- Presidents' Day (third Monday in February)
- Patriots' Day (third Monday in April)
- Memorial Day (last Monday in May)
- Independence Day (July 4)
- Labor Day (first Monday in September)
- Columbus Day (second Monday in October)
- Veterans' Day (November 11)
- Thanksgiving Day (fourth Thursday in November)
- Day after Thanksgiving
- Christmas Day
Holidays falling on Sunday will be observed on Monday. Saturday holidays are observed on Saturday.
Holiday Pay
Represented/Contract Employees:
In accordance with the guidelines set forth in individual employment or collectively bargained contracts and District policy, the Wachusett Regional School District will provide holiday pay to eligible employees.
Unrepresented Non-Contract Employees:
Full time/full year staff and part time/full year staff who are scheduled to work twenty (20) hours or more per week will be granted holiday pay when the District is closed for business for the above stated holidays.
If an employee questions whether he/she is paid for any of the holidays listed above, please consult your individual collective bargaining agreement, individual employment contract or the Office of Administrative Services.
4. VACATION BENEFITS
The following employee classifications are eligible for vacation benefits according to the guidelines set forth in District procedures and in conformance with individual union and employment contracts:
* Full-Time Employees
* Part-Time with Benefits Employees
* Probationary Employees
The Wachusett Regional School District will provide vacation leave to eligible represented/contract employees in accordance with the guidelines set forth in individual employment or collectively bargained contracts and District policy.
Unrepresented Non-Contract Employees:
Unrepresented non-contract full time/full year and part time/full year employees who are scheduled to work twenty (20) hours or more per week, will be granted vacation leave in accordance with the following: the employee will be granted 0.833 days per full month worked until July 1, then ten (10) days vacation per year through five completed years of employment, fifteen days vacation per year for six through ten (6-10) completed years of employment and twenty (20) days vacation per year after ten completed years of employment and thereafter. Vacation leave accrual will begin with date of hire into a position eligible for the benefit.
Full time/full year unrepresented non-contract employees who currently are accruing at a higher rate will maintain the current higher rate until such time as they are compatible with the schedule. All accrued vacation must be used by June 30 of each year.
IMPORTANT NOTE: Vacation time is not cumulative from year to year.
If you are an unrepresented non-contract employee, contact the Office of Administrative Services with questions regarding vacation.
Calculations
Employees who have satisfied all eligibility requirements shall either accrue vacation on a monthly basis or may be awarded that upcoming year’s vacation on July 1 of that year. Please consult your individual collective bargaining agreement, individual employment contract to determine the method of calculation. Vacation pay will be calculated based on the employee's straight-time pay rate in effect when vacation benefits are used. Vacation pay does not include any special form of compensation.
Prorating Vacation
Those employees who have satisfied all eligibility requirements and accrue vacation on a monthly basis will be paid out all accrued but not taken vacation upon separation from employment with District. Those employees who have satisfied all eligibility requirements and who are awarded vacation for the upcoming year on July 1 will have the vacation amount due them upon separation for that year prorated based upon the proportion of time actually worked by the employee in that year. If any excess vacation days have already been used, the employee will compensate the District for them.
Requests
The Wachusett Regional School District endorses professional development and growth including participation in continuing education. Employees may qualify for tuition reimbursement for courses. Please refer to your collectively bargained agreement or individual employment contract for specific eligibility and rate of reimbursement. Participation in educational programs must be authorized in writing by your building administrator or department supervisor and the Superintendent or designee. Successful completion of accredited courses with a minimum grade of "B" is required.
Full time and part time employees that work twenty (20) or more hours per week are eligible to enroll in health, dental, life and voluntary life insurance within thirty (30) days of being hired. Employees that work thirty (30) or more hours per week per school year or work twenty (20) or more hours per week full year are eligible to enroll in long term disability insurance within thirty (30) days of being hired.
Employees eligible to enroll in health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District have thirty (30) days from the date of hire to submit a completed enrollment insurance form(s) to the District to be eligible. The employee’s health and/or dental insurance policy would become effective on the employee’s date of hire. There is no waiting period.
If an employee decides not to enroll during the initial eligibility (within thirty (30) days from the initial date of hire), the employee may elect to enroll during the District’s open enrollment period, September 1st through 19th of each year, without penalty. The employee’s policy would then become effective September 20th.
If an employee has a qualifying event, the employee may enroll in the health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District immediately upon the qualifying event without waiting for the District’s open enrollment period. The employee is required to submit the qualifying event documentation to the District for eligibility approval.
If an employee is enrolling himself/herself and spouse in the District’s health and/or dental insurance, the employee must enroll as a family policy and not two individual policies. The District’s current insurance guidelines with the current health and dental insurance carriers do not allow two individual policies unless both members are employees of the District.
The employee and the District share the cost of the monthly health insurance premium. For Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) plans, the employee pays 25% of the cost and the District pays 75% of the cost. For the Preferred Provider Organization (PPO) plan, the employee and the District share the cost 50/50.
The employee is responsible for 100% of the monthly dental insurance premium. The District does not contribute to the cost of dental insurance.
If an employee should resign or leave involuntarily from the District, the employee may continue with the employee’s health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District under Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1965 (COBRA) for an eighteen-month period. Teachers who have completed the school year and whose employee contributions for insurance were deducted from the compensation paid for services during the previous school year will be covered at the employee rate through August 31st, pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 32B, Section 2.
If an employee should retire from the District, the employee may continue with the employee’s health and/or dental insurance coverage as a retired employee. The retired employee and the District share the cost of the monthly insurance premium 50/50 regardless if the health plan is an HMO or PPO. The retired employee is responsible for paying 100% of the dental insurance premium.
Employees eligible to enroll in the Basic $10,000.00 Life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance have thirty (30) days from the employee’s date of hire to submit the completed enrollment card to the District to be eligible. The employee’s life insurance policy is effective on the first day of the following month from the date of hire. For example, if an employee’s date of hire is the 23rd of the month, the employee’s life insurance policy will be effective the first of the following month.
If an employee decides not to enroll during the employee’s initial eligibility (within thirty (30) days from the employee’s initial date of hire), the employee has the option of enrolling at a later date of the employee’s choice. The employee would be required to complete an enrollment card along with an additional form, Evidence of Insurability. This additional form has medical questions that the employee is required to answer prior to the life insurance carrier approving the enrollment application.
The employee and the District share the cost of the monthly life insurance premium 50/50.
If the employee should resign or involuntarily leave the District, the employee may continue with their life insurance policy directly through the life insurance carrier. Teachers who have completed the school year and whose employee contributions for insurance were deducted from the compensation paid for services during the previous school year will be covered at the employee rate through August 31st, pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 32B, Section 2. The District is required to forward to the employee the necessary paperwork to continue their life insurance coverage.
If an employee should retire from the District, the employee may continue with the employee’s life insurance policy as a retired employee of the District. The retired employee and the District share the monthly insurance cost. The retired employee is responsible for 95% of the cost and the District is responsible for 5% of the cost.
Group Voluntary Life Insurance
Employees are eligible to enroll in the Group Voluntary Life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance Plan as long as they have enrolled in the Basic $10,000.00 Life Insurance Plan. Employees have thirty (30) days from the employee’s date of hire to submit a completed enrollment form to the District in order to be eligible. The voluntary life insurance policy is effective on the first day of the following month from the date of hire.
Under the Group Voluntary Life and Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance Plan, the insurance carrier offers life insurance coverage for the employee, employee’s spouse and dependent child(ren) from age 14 days to age 19 or to age 25 if the dependent child(ren) are full time students.
If an employee decides not to enroll during the employee’s initial eligibility (within 30 days from the employee’s date of hire) the employee has the option of enrolling at a later date of the employee’s choice. The employee is required to complete an enrollment form along with an additional form, Evidence of Insurability. This additional form has medical questions that the employee is required to answer prior to the life insurance carrier approving the enrollment application.
The employee is responsible for 100% of the monthly insurance premium.
When an employee leaves employment through the District, the voluntary life insurance policy(s) through the District automatically ends. Teachers who have completed the school year and whose employee contributions for insurance were deducted from the compensation paid for services during the previous school year will be covered at the employee rate through August 31st, pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 32B, Section 2. The employee may continue the life insurance policy(s) directly through the life insurance carrier. The District is responsible for forwarding the necessary paperwork to the employee for the conversion privilege.
Employees who work twenty (20) or more hours per week, full year, or thirty (30) or more hours per week, school year, are eligible to enroll in long term disability insurance. Employees have thirty (30) days from the employee’s date of hire to submit the employee’s completed enrollment form to the District to be eligible. The employee’s long term disability insurance policy is effective on the employee’s date of hire. There is no waiting period.
If an employee decides not to enroll in the long term disability insurance within thirty (30) days of the employee’s date of hire, the employee has the option of enrolling at a later date of the employee’s choice. The employee is required to complete an enrollment form along with additional information, Declaration of Insurability Form. This additional information has medical questions that the employee is required to answer before the long term disability insurance carrier will approve the enrollment application.
The employee is responsible for 100% of the insurance premium. Employees of the District that participate in the long term disability insurance are entitled to a salary stipend equivalent to 50% of the member’s yearly insurance premium. Employees must show proof of enrollment to receive the salary stipend from the District.
The long term disability insurance policy is immediately terminated when the employee leaves employment voluntarily, involuntarily or retires from the District. Teachers who have completed the school year and whose employee contributions for insurance were deducted from the compensation paid for services during the previous school year will be covered at the employee rate through August 31st, pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 32B, Section 2. This benefit is only for actively working employees of the District.
If an employee of the District is actively working and turns age 65 and is Medicare eligible and has health insurance coverage through the District, his/her current health plan will remain the primary insurance carrier and Medicare will become the secondary insurance carrier.
When the employee retires from the District, Medicare insurance may become the employee’s primary insurance carrier and the employee’s health insurance through the District would become the secondary insurance carrier. If the employee is eligible for Medicare Part B and the employee did not elect to enroll in Medicare Part B while actively working, that employee may enroll in Medicare Part B, without penalty, within 30 days of retirement.
When a retired employee of the District turns age 65 and is Medicare eligible, the retired employee of the District has three different health insurance options to choose from if the employee is already enrolled in health insurance coverage through the District. This applies to the retired employee as well as the employee’s spouse.
Option 1: The retired employee or spouse may continue with the employee’s current health insurance plan through the District. When Medicare eligible and selected, Medicare would become the primary insurance carrier and the employee’s current health plan would become the employee’s secondary insurance carrier. Retired employees and spouses, when eligible for Medicare Part A & B, are not forced to discontinue the employee’s current health insurance plan through the District.
Option 2: The retired employee or spouse has the option to enroll in either the Fallon Senior Plan or BCBS Medex (the two current senior health plans the District is offering at this time). If the retired employee or spouse elects either plan, the retired employee or spouse must be Medicare Part A & Part B eligible to enroll.
If the retired employee currently holds a family health insurance plan through the District for the employee and spouse, and one of them is Medicare Part A & Part B eligible and elects to enroll in one of the senior plans through the District, the current family health insurance plan will automatically change to an individual plan.
Option 3:
If the retired employee or spouse cannot
decide whether to enroll in either senior plan offered by the District or to stay with
their current health plan when first eligible for Medicare Part A & Part B, the
retired employee or spouse has the option to enroll in either senior plan at a later date
during the District’s annual open enrollment period.
Currently, the BCBS Medex open enrollment is September 1st of
each year and the Fallon Senior Plan open enrollment is January 1st of each
year.
If an employee is enrolled in either health and/or dental insurance through the District and should voluntarily or involuntarily leave the District, the former employee is eligible to continue with health and/or dental insurance. Teachers who have completed the school year and whose employee contributions for insurance were deducted from the compensation paid for services during the previous school year will be covered at the employee rate through August 31st, pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws, Chapter 32B, Section 2. Pursuant to the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1965 (COBRA), the former employee is eligible to continue with the health and/or dental insurance coverage under COBRA through the District for a period of 18 months. The former employee has sixty days from the date of notice by the District or the date coverage ceases, whichever occurs later, to notify the District of the former employee’s election to participate in COBRA health and/or dental insurance coverage. The former employee is responsible for 101% of the insurance premium. The District invoices the former employee on a quarterly basis but the insurance premium is due monthly, on the first of each month.
If an employee of the District should pass away and at the time of death held the family health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District, the surviving spouse and dependent child(ren) are eligible to continue with health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District. The surviving spouse and dependent child(ren) are eligible to continue with the health and/or dental coverage under COBRA through the District for a period of 36 months. The surviving spouse and eligible dependent child(ren) would be responsible for 101% of the insurance premium. The District invoices the surviving spouse on a quarterly basis but the insurance premium is due monthly, on the first of the month.
If the deceased employee passed away while an active employee of the District and was eligible for the benefits program through the District (worked full time for 10 or more years) but was not yet retired and held the health and/or dental insurance coverage for the spouse and/or dependent child(ren), the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) would be eligible to continue with health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District at the retired employee rate for life. Should the spouse remarry, the insurance coverage through the District automatically ends. If the dependent child(ren) reach the age of 19, or age 25 for full time students, the family insurance coverage automatically ends through the District and the spouse may convert to an individual policy. If the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) voluntarily cancel the health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District, the option to re-enroll at a later date will not be available.
If a dependent of an employee enrolled in either health and/or dental insurance through the District and the dependent’s insurance coverage should end due to age limit (up to the age 19 or up to the age 25 if a full time college student), the dependent child is eligible to continue with his/her health and/or dental insurance coverage under COBRA through the District for a period of 18 months. The former dependent child could enroll in an individual policy through the District’s group insurance coverage. The former dependent child is responsible for 101% of the individual insurance premium. The District invoices the former dependent child on a quarterly basis but the insurance premium is due monthly, on the first of the month.
If an employee of the District was enrolled in a family health insurance plan for both himself/herself and ex-spouse and either the employee or ex-spouse should remarry, the ex-spouse is immediately terminated from the insurance plan effective on the marriage date. If the employee of the District is the one that remarries, then the ex-spouse is eligible to continue with the insurance benefit through the District under COBRA for 18 months. If COBRA is elected, the ex-spouse could enroll in an individual policy through the District’s group coverage. The ex-spouse would be responsible for 101% of the insurance premium. The District would invoice the ex-spouse on a quarterly basis but the insurance premium is due monthly, on the first of the month. If the divorce decree between the employee and ex-spouse indicates that the employee is responsible for the ex-spouse’s health insurance coverage “for life”, then the ex-spouse would still enroll in an individual policy through the District’s group coverage but the employee would be responsible for the monthly insurance premium at 101% for life.
When an employee of District retires from his/her position in the District under a State retirement plan, the retired employee is entitled to continue with his/her health insurance benefit through the District’s health insurance group coverage. The retired employee and the District share the cost of the monthly insurance premium 50/50 regardless if the health plan is an HMO or PPO.
If the retired employee has maintained an individual health insurance policy through the District, the retired employee would be entitled to continue his/her individual health insurance coverage upon retirement. The retired employee and the District share the cost of the monthly insurance premium 50/50 regardless if the health plan is an HMO or PPO.
If the retired employee has maintained a family health insurance policy through the District, the retired employee is entitled to continue with his/her family health insurance coverage upon retirement. The retired employee and the District share the cost of the monthly insurance premium 50/50 regardless if the health plan is an HMO or PPO.
If the retired employee has maintained a family health insurance policy through the District, for the employee, spouse and dependent child(ren) and the dependent child(ren) are no longer covered under the employee’s policy due to the fact that they are no longer full time college students or have reached age 25, the retired employee would continue to maintain a family health insurance policy for the employee and spouse. The only time an employee may convert this particular family plan to two individual health insurance plans is if both the employee and spouse were employees of the District and are eligible for health insurance benefits at the time of retirement.
If the employee is enrolled in an individual policy through the District and wishes to enroll in a family plan upon retirement, the employee must enroll in a family plan prior to retirement, during the District’s health insurance open enrollment period, to be eligible for a family plan upon retirement.
A retired employee can only convert his/her individual policy to a family policy after the employee’s retirement date if there is a qualifying event to change the individual policy to a family policy. Examples of some qualifying events are: marriage, birth of a child, legal guardianship or adoption of a dependent child, dependent child becomes an eligible full-time student on the exact same date as the employee was to retire.
If a retired employee has not maintained health insurance coverage through the District as an employee or as a retired employee and was eligible for health insurance benefits at the time of retirement, the retired employee has the option of enrolling during the District’s open enrollment period or if there is a COBRA qualifying event. The retired employee has the option of enrolling in an individual plan or a family plan for his/her spouse and/or dependent children.
The retired employee and the District will share the monthly health insurance premium 50/50 whether the plan is an HMO or PPO. The retired employee has two options for paying their monthly insurance premium. If the retired employee is a member of the Massachusetts Teacher Retirement Board (MTRB), the retired employee has the option of having the monthly insurance premium deducted from the retired employee’s monthly pension check or the retired employee can pay their monthly insurance premium directly to the District. If the retired employee is not a member of MTRB, the District will automatically invoice the retired employee for the monthly insurance premium. The District will mail quarterly invoices but the retired employee is responsible for paying the monthly premium each month. If the retired employee wishes to pay the insurance premium quarterly, the retired employee may do so; otherwise payments are due on the first of each month. If a retired employee is residing out of State and the District’s health insurance policies will not cover the employee and his family for routine medical care, the employee may enroll in a health insurance program where he/she resides. The District, upon proper certification, will reimburse the retiree for 50% of the cost of the premium or 50% of the cost of the District’s comparable program, whichever is less.
Health Insurance Coverage for a Surviving Spouse and/or Dependent Child(ren) of a Deceased Retired Employee of WRSD
If a retired employee of the District, who has maintained family health insurance coverage for his/her spouse and/or dependent child(ren) through the District and has passed away, the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) may continue the health insurance coverage through the District’s group coverage at the retired employee rate. If the surviving spouse should remarry the health insurance through the District automatically ends. If the dependent child(ren) should reach age 19 or age 25 for full time students, the family health insurance coverage automatically ends and the spouse can enroll in an individual policy through the District. If the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) should voluntarily cancel their health insurance coverage through the District’s group coverage, the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) cannot re-enroll.
If a retired employee of the District, who has maintained an individual health insurance policy through the District, has passed away, the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) may obtain family or individual health insurance coverage through the District’s group policy during the District’s open enrollment period or if the surviving spouse experiences a COBRA qualifying event. The surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) would have coverage at the retired employee rate. If the surviving spouse should remarry, insurance coverage through the District automatically ends. If the dependent child(ren) should reach age 19 or age 25 for full time students, the spouse can enroll in an individual policy through the District. If the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) should voluntarily cancel their health insurance coverage through the District’s group coverage, the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) cannot re-enroll.
If a retired employee of the District who never had health insurance coverage as an employee of the District or as a retired employee of the District has passed away, the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) may obtain family or individual health insurance coverage through the District’s group coverage during the District’s open enrollment period or if the surviving spouse experiences a COBRA qualifying event. The surviving spouse and/or dependent children would have coverage at the retired employee rate for life. If the surviving spouse should remarry, the health insurance through the District automatically ends. If the dependent child(ren) should reach age 19 or age 25 for full time students, the family health insurance coverage automatically ends and the spouse can enroll in an individual policy through the District. If the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) should voluntarily cancel the health insurance coverage through the District’s group coverage, the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) cannot re-enroll.
If the deceased employee passed away while an active employee of the District and was eligible for benefits program through the District (worked full time for 10 or more years) but was not yet retired and held the health and/or dental insurance coverage for the spouse and/or dependent child(ren), the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) would be eligible to continue with health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District at the retired employee rate for life. Should the spouse remarry, the health insurance through the District automatically ends. If the dependent child(ren) should reach age 19, or age 25 for full time students, the family health insurance coverage automatically ends and the spouse can enroll in an individual policy through the District. If the surviving spouse and/or dependent child(ren) voluntarily cancel their health and/or dental insurance coverage through the District, they may not have the option to re-enroll at a later date.
7. WORKERS' COMPENSATION INSURANCE
The Wachusett Regional School District provides a comprehensive Workers' Compensation program at no cost to employees. This program covers any injury or illness sustained in the course of employment that requires medical treatment.
Any employee who sustains a work-related injury or illness must inform their supervisor or building administrator immediately. A First Report of Injury Form must be completed and signed before any determination of liability will be made. No matter how minor an on-the-job injury may appear, it is important that the report be sent or faxed (508 829-1680) to the Office of Administrative Services within twenty-four (24) hours or the next business day. This will enable an eligible employee to qualify for coverage as quickly as possible. (See "Accidents at Work”, Section F, Working Conditions).
Bills and Excuse Notes
All medical treatment bills should be sent to the Office of Administrative Services, Jefferson School, 1745 Main Street, Jefferson, Massachusetts 01522 to expedite processing. The Office of Administrative Services and the employee’s supervisor or building administrator will need copies of medical excuse note(s) from the doctor(s) including the projected return to work date and restrictions, if any. The employee is required to provide an excuse note(s) for all days unable to work.
8. RETIREMENT BENEFITS
The Wachusett Regional School District participates in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Deferred Compensation Plan as a result of accepting the provision of Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 29, Section 64D, in accordance with the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1990 (OBRA). As a part-time, temporary, or seasonal employee of the District, you are required to contribute a percentage, set by the District, of your compensation to the Commonwealth's Deferred Compensation Plan, in lieu of having to pay FICA taxes. The minimum contribution required by state law is 7.5% of your gross compensation per pay period. If you have any questions regarding OBRA, you should direct those to the Office of Administrative Services or the Payroll Office.
Full-Time and Part-Time Employees with Benefits
Employees whose positions require they be certified by the Department of Education participate in the Massachusetts State Teachers' Retirement System. All other non-certified employees participate in the Worcester County Retirement System. The currently required contribution of either plan for new employees is nine percent (9%) plus two percent (2%) of salary over $30,000, of an employee’s annual salary deducted before taxes.
Employees who have creditable service with other government agencies in Massachusetts who participate in the State Retirement System may request their contributions and years of service be transferred, along with their original eligibility date, to one of the above retirement systems according to established rules and regulations.
9. TAX SHELTERED ANNUITIES
Tax sheltered annuity (403) (b) plans are available to employees wishing to supplement their retirement and defer federal and state income taxes. Such plans are established as a salary reduction agreement. The contract is between the employee and an authorized investment firm. These plans are 100% employee funded. For information about these funds, consult a financial advisor.
10. MEAL ALLOWANCES
Employees may become eligible for reimbursement for meals if their duties require attendance at meetings, seminars, or programs that include meals. Employees required to work extended hours may also be eligible. Please refer to your collectively bargained agreement or individual employment contracts.
Meal expenses are reimbursable at face value if a receipt is received and is pre-approved by the building administrator and the Superintendent or designee. All expenses require the approval of the Superintendent or designee.
11. LONGEVITY
Your collectively bargained agreement or individual employment contract may provide for longevity. Please refer to such agreement(s) for specific provisions of longevity payments.