After one year of employment all eligible employees must participate in the College's defined contribution retirement plan.  To be eligible to participate in the plan you must be a member of the eligible categories, as described in the plans Summary Plan Description, be twenty-five (25) years of age or older and have completed one year of continuous employment at Wagner College.  The one-year employment requirement is waived if during the 12-month period prior to your hire you have been employed in an institution of higher education.

Once you become eligible for the retirement plan, you will be asked to pick up your pension packet from the Office of Human Resources.  At that time, the College will make available to you video and printed materials, provided by the Teacher’s Insurance Annuity Association and College Retirement Education Fund (TIAA/CREF) to assist you in making an informed financial planning decision.

Your minimum contribution to the pension plan is 5% of your base salary.  You may, however, contribute an additional amount in accordance with IRS regulations.  Your contributions are made through salary reduction and are therefore not considered taxable income.

The College, in turn, contributes 9% of your base salary during your first 7 years of employment, and increases its contribution to 10% once you have completed seven years of continuous service.  All tenured faculty receive a college contribution of 10%.

Copies of the Summary Plan Description and a TIAA/CREF library series are available to all employees at the Office of Human Resources.

Any employee wishing to increase their pension contributions should contact the Office of Human Resources to have a Tax Deferred Annuity calculation prepared and to sign a salary reduction agreement with the college.