Employee Matters

This column is prepared by staff from the Office of Human Resources. E-mail questions to Payroll and Benefits Services or call 262-5650. For more information, visit Payroll and Benefit Resources.

Returning to work after retirement

If you receive a Wisconsin Retirement System (WRS) annuity benefit after you retire from WRS-covered employment at the university, you are considered an annuitant. This article briefly reviews the effects of returning to work on WRS annuity benefits.

Are there rules for returning to work at a non-WRS employer?

No. You may work in the private sector or for a non-WRS public employer with no effect on you WRS annuity benefits.

Are there rules for returning to work at a WRS employer?

Yes. You may return to work with a WRS employer after a required minimum break in service with no effect on your WRS annuity benefits. You would be considered a “rehired annuitant.”

The minimum break in service begins on your termination date and ends on the latest of the following:

• the day after the annuity effective date; or
• the 31st day after the termination date; or
• the 31st day after ETF receives the benefit application.

However, please note that the employer is not obligated to hire or rehire an annuitant, and prearranged agreements between the employer and the annuitant to return to work are not permitted.

What are the penalties for returning to work before fulfilling the minimum break in service?

You are not entitled to your WRS annuity benefit and it will be canceled by the Department of Employee Trust Funds (ETF).

If I return to employment as a rehired annuitant, are there any decisions I must make?

You should file a “Rehired Annuitant Election” form ET 2319 with your employer, who will then forward it to ETF. You will either elect not to participate as an active employee in the WRS and continue your WRS annuity benefit. Or, if your position is WRS-eligible, you can choose to resume active WRS participation. Your retirement annuity would then be terminated and your WRS coverage will begin effective on the first of the month after ETF receives your election form ET-2319. Even if you initially decline WRS participation, an election to participate can be made at any time in the future.

Are rehired annuitants eligible for benefits?

If you continue to receive WRS annuity benefits, you are only eligible to enroll in the tax-sheltered annuities (TSA) and deferred compensation programs, long-term care insurance, the Employee Reimbursement Account (ERA) and the commuter benefit program.

If you stop your annuity and resume active participation in the WRS, you are eligible to enroll in all benefit plans just as any other active employee in that same position who is enrolled in WRS. If you continued or converted coverage under any insurance plans at the time of the first retirement, that coverage must be terminated before enrolling in the plan as an employee.

What if I want more information?

You can visit the Office of Human Resources: Rehired Annuitants or e-mail Payroll and Benefits Services.