Retirement Badge #01: Introduction to Retirement-Retirement Badge #01

Video Transcription

Video Summary

Rochelle Gaines introduces Badge 1 of the Retirement Badge Series, explaining key retirement concepts for Washington public education employers. She distinguishes “separation from employment” from “retirement” as defined by the Department of Retirement Systems (DRS): DRS considers someone retired only when they file for and begin receiving a pension. The session previews common acronyms (e.g., DRS, TRS, SERS, DCP, RCW, WAC) and outlines DRS’s role in administering statewide public retirement systems, serving hundreds of thousands of members across many employer types.<br /><br />The training focuses primarily on TRS (Teachers), SERS (School Employees), and PERS context, including plan history and plan types. It explains defined benefit (DB) pensions—typically calculated as Average Final Compensation (AFC) × service credit × plan multiplier—and hybrid Plan 3 structures that combine a smaller DB benefit with a defined contribution (DC) investment account. A key Plan 3 note: the member’s contribution rate generally cannot be changed unless they change employers.<br /><br />Governance is shared among DRS, the Legislature, the Select Committee on Pension Policy, the Office of the State Actuary, the Pension Funding Council, and the Washington State Investment Board (WSIB). Funding is primarily pre-funded through contributions and investment earnings, with actuarial valuations performed every two years. Resources and linked references (RCWs, WACs, DRS webpages, county benefit data, and annual financial reports) are provided before the final assessment.

Keywords

Washington public education retirement

Department of Retirement Systems (DRS)

separation from employment vs retirement

TRS SERS PERS plans

defined benefit pension formula (AFC service credit multiplier)

Plan 3 hybrid DB/DC structure

defined contribution investment account (DCP)

retirement system governance (Legislature WSIB State Actuary)

pension funding and actuarial valuations