Teacher's Pension - working beyond 60

CipherFox3

Hum...I am turning 60 in November, so after starting the job in September.  Teachers Pensions said:  

"An earnings limit would apply when you take any benefits at the correct pension age. If you exceed the earnings limit, your pension will be suspended."

So from that, what I understand is that I can't take the final salary pension at 60, even though that is my normal pension age, because I will be working and since my earnings would exceed the salary of reference, it would be disadvantageous in the long term.  

zagubov

Yes that is all true. However they have not explained what would happen if you voluntarially reduced the pension from being complete to being partial by retiring shortly before your retirement age of 60.

If you took the pension just before you are starting in September, while you are still 59, it will be actuarially reduced instead of being a complete full pension. You could ask Teachers Pensions how much the reduction would be. You'd be receiving the incomplete pension for longer and assuming you enjoy a long retirement you'll eventually receive what you've been missing.

Alternatively if you wait until you're sixty you can claim your full FS pension, it won't be actuarially reduced. You can continue working but as the pension isn't meant to act as a pay rise for a full-time teacher, they will claw some of it back so you don't get more than your salary of reference by receiving a full salary at the same time as a full pension. This clawback/suspension is called abatement, may be quite substantial and it's not clear when or if you'll ever see that money again. This could be a major disincentive to working full-time past retirement.

I retired six months before my retirement age and started a new job after a gap during which I was unemployed but receiving my pension. This gap needs to be at least one day (doesn't matter if it's at the weekend /holidays).

Being rehired after retirement does mean your combined income could require you to pay more tax.You may be worried about spending a day unemployed with no death-in-service benefits but if you check you should find that your loved ones still receive some protection during that gap via Death Benefits. It's not Teachers pensions job to tell you about these loopholes but if you ask them about this they will answer honestly.