Healthcare cost raised for the retired

[oldupsman]

I have.
Will be a bonus if I'm able to collect my pension and social security during all of my retirement years. However, I should be able to live comfortably without them if the bottom falls out.

Congraulations. But lets be honest. You're the exception, not the rule. That's why you have UPS drivers on all levels
still working with 40 to 45 years of service. They're afraid to leave because they have no assurances of a stable
health care plan or pension.

 

[bottomups]

I'll be honest. I and my spouse have invested in our own retirement funds from early ages and have done well.
Additionally, both of us have rather wealthy mothers in their mid to late 80's and will inherit quite sizeable estates.

 

[olroadbeech]

Re read Milikman's post #60 before attacking him for complaining that his healthcare cost is going up a hundred bucks a month.

He is NOT. he and other retirees were told one thing and then another thing happened. the ol bait and switch. that is where his anger and frustration comes from. wouldn't you be angry? it's not so much the money as the principle of the matter.

This is going to happen to you too. Retirees are being squeezed from all sides constantly. No matter how well you prepare for retirement costs we know things are going to go up. Costs are always going up. I'm sure Milkman knew this.

He and MANY others were lied too.

He said "put yourself in my shoes." People need to try to do that before JUMPING to conclusions and attacking before thinking.

 

[LagunaBrown]

All I can say to you is that if your Local did a better job then possibly you would be enjoying the benefits we had at the costs negotiated on our behalf. Sad to say but, The old saying "United WE Stand Divided We Fall" Looks like Division amongst the rank and file has caused such disparity in various Locals in our country

Milk, it is easy to blame the Union but that is not always the case. I know of many regions that put it up to a vote and the members passed up on retiree healthcare (voted it down 4 times) to allocate the funds to their pension. Their pension contributions are higher than ours but they have to pay on the back end in retirement where we have a better healthcare plan. You see there is a lump of money in each region and since there are many healthcare laws that vary from state to state so it is up to the local and its members to decide where that money goes. It is a geographical and why it is so different everywhere.

 

[LagunaBrown]

Re read Milikman's post #60 before attacking him for complaining that his healthcare cost is going up a hundred bucks a month.

He is NOT. he and other retirees were told one thing and then another thing happened. the ol bait and switch. that is where his anger and frustration comes from. wouldn't you be angry? it's not so much the money as the principle of the matter.

This is going to happen to you too. Retirees are being squeezed from all sides constantly. No matter how well you prepare for retirement costs we know things are going to go up. Costs are always going up. I'm sure Milkman knew this.

He and MANY others were lied too.

He said "put yourself in my shoes." People need to try to do that before JUMPING to conclusions and attacking before thinking.

There is no need for any attacking, this is turning to a very good forum topic IMO. It is very important for active members to realize that they will no longer have a vote when they retire. You can not strike over retiree medical and that is why I am happy to have switched from the company plan to the taft hartley that has WR177healthcare. I trust my Union far more than UPS and even though the benefits are a little different, my Local and its members have done a good job at keeping a balance of Pension, Health and welfare and general wage increases. I know this is not the case everywhere but I just wanted to let people know its not all bad everywhere either nor just the Unions fault.

 

[BigUnionGuy]

He and MANY others were lied too.

When have you seen the company be "forthright", and honest at the same time ?

They lie everyday.

He said "put yourself in my shoes." People need to try to do that before JUMPING to conclusions and attacking before thinking.

In all fairness.... I'm sure, we don't know all the details.


Look at the vehicles in the parking lot.

Those aren't all management people and part-timers.

Just say'n....



-Bug-

 

[rod]

I'll be honest. I and my spouse have invested in our own retirement funds from early ages and have done well.
Additionally, both of us have rather wealthy mothers in their mid to late 80's and will inherit quite sizeable estates.

INHERITING-- The ultimate retirement plan --other than winning the lottery.
-----Not everyone has a nest egg waiting to be handed to them. When my Dad died my two brothers and I ended up with about $40,000 each. It was sad to see how little a mans whole life of hard work could be worth in the end. When my mother-in-law goes her estate will be split among 8 kids. Her living in a one bedroom duplex with very few possessions won't amount to anything. . On the other end of the scale my daughters mother-in-law recently died and left them tons of money. I've already hinted that we may be moving in with them .

 

[Mugarolla]

I can recall voting on contracts with specifics stating what the benefits are. Pension increases, pay raises etc. But back around 2001 or so UPS rolled out a so called NEW type of insurance plan for us to choose from. That's when I started mail order drugs. Told"FREE" home delivery..$5.00 name brand at cvs etc and generics "FREE" at those outlets. Our retirement pkg at the time did not include dental and eye care. BUT...BIG BUT........If YOU switch to the NEW Healthcare plan when YOU retire you will have the same exact benefits as drivers at a cost of $50.00 per month till age 65. The only catch was YOU have to be on this plan 4 years prior to your retirement for this benefit pkg to go with you into retirement. Now $150.00 per month (only me no family) $200 deductible, 20% co pays on drugs (that used to be free) and 20% co pays on doctor visits (used to be 10% of approved negotiated rate) I don't know about you but I played by the rules, got on the NEW plan for 4 years and now look where the NEW plan has gone...It stinks for me and everyone else in the same boat I am in. I was on the East Coast when this went down years ago. So can ya blame me and the others who got the shaft by playing by the rules and switching to the New plan? I was always on the the traditional plan up till that time, and I was happy to have dental and eye care if I took the New plan, The traditional plan had no dental or eye care so it was a no brainer on my part or others who made the switch. To bad other Locals from what I see on these forums got some bum deals

Were you "told" that your insurance would be $50/mo until you turned 65 or was it wrtten down in the SPD.

I remember H&H "telling" us that Teamcare mirrored the UPS plan. The SPD said something different.

I believe that the SPD said that you could keep the insurance until age 65 and at the current time it was $50/mo.

I do not believe that there were any guarantees that it would stay $50/mo until you turned 65.

It always amazes me that people take someone else's word for things instead of doing some research and seeing it for themselves in writing.

For the most part, when I reply to someone's question, I give an answer and quote the pertinent contractual language so that the person can see for themselves instead of taking someone's word for it.

 

[IVE GOTTA PACKAGE 4U]

Were you "told" that your insurance would be $50/mo until you turned 65 or was it wrtten down in the SPD.

I remember H&H "telling" us that Teamcare mirrored the UPS plan. The SPD said something different.

I believe that the SPD said that you could keep the insurance until age 65 and at the current time it was $50/mo.

I do not believe that there were any guarantees that it would stay $50/mo until you turned 65.

It always amazes me that people take someone else's word for things instead of doing some research and seeing it for themselves in writing.

For the most part, when I reply to someone's question, I give an answer and quote the pertinent contractual language so that the person can see for themselves instead of taking someone's word for it.

They still got a raw deal.

 

[ski or die]

The Company will not come out of this unscathed. As employees continue to age, they will realize the cost associated with their healthcare that they will be responsible for as well as possible increases in the premiums. Also the possibility of their pensions maybe slashed also. This will make many employees reconsider early retirement forcing them to work longer. As they age, they production will slow down which the contract prohibits discipline discrimination due to age. Injuries happen more frequently, and many will be having to take time off for these problems and receive FMLA. Also, a side note, these older employees have more vacation time the company will need to cover for compared to a newer employee.

 

[olroadbeech]

INHERITING-- The ultimate retirement plan --other than winning the lottery.
-----Not everyone has a nest egg waiting to be handed to them. When my Dad died my two brothers and I ended up with about $40,000 each. It was sad to see how little a mans whole life of hard work could be worth in the end. When my mother-in-law goes her estate will be split among 8 kids. Her living in a one bedroom duplex with very few possessions won't amount to anything. . On the other end of the scale my daughters mother-in-law recently died and left them tons of money. I've already hinted that we may be moving in with them .

off topic ( sort of ) when my mother in law died she left a huge debt that her children had to pay. out of 4 children , who did you think paid the bulk of that debt?

on topic. Laguna Brown....yes this is an excellent thread and i believe this was one of the main reasons why Cheryl created Brown Cafe. Educating and entertaining employees and customers of package delivery companies. It's a shame that a small minority is trying to bring down the BC with their hate. Miserable people have to put down others to make themselves feel better.

anyway. I hope a lot of unretired workers are reading this and thinking about their future retiree healthcare costs. i'm guilty of not paying enough attention. now it's too late for me. but not for current employees.

 

[UpstateNYUPSer(Ret)]

off topic ( sort of ) when my mother in law died she left a huge debt that her children had to pay. out of 4 children , who did you think paid the bulk of that debt?

The estate, if any, would cover the debt. Any unpaid balance remaining would be wiped out. Creditors cannot go after the children for repayment unless they were specifically listed as a guarantor on the note.

 

[Brownslave688]

off topic ( sort of ) when my mother in law died she left a huge debt that her children had to pay. out of 4 children , who did you think paid the bulk of that debt?e

Did you pay because you were totally uninformed or because you actually had to pay or dumb enough to cosign?

http://money.cnn.com/2014/06/19/pf/inherited-debt-adult-children/


I've got a guess....

 

[Brownslave688]

The estate, if any, would cover the debt. Any unpaid balance remaining would be wiped out. Creditors cannot go after the children for repayment unless they were specifically listed as a guarantor on the note.

She has no idea what she's talking about.




I'm as shocked as you are I promise.

 

[The Milkman]

Re read Milikman's post #60 before attacking him for complaining that his healthcare cost is going up a hundred bucks a month.

He is NOT. he and other retirees were told one thing and then another thing happened. the ol bait and switch. that is where his anger and frustration comes from. wouldn't you be angry? it's not so much the money as the principle of the matter.

This is going to happen to you too. Retirees are being squeezed from all sides constantly. No matter how well you prepare for retirement costs we know things are going to go up. Costs are always going up. I'm sure Milkman knew this.

He and MANY others were lied too.

He said "put yourself in my shoes." People need to try to do that before JUMPING to conclusions and attacking before thinking.

I wear size 13......Like you said it is the Principal of the matter. I am happy you see the light and understand what we feel.Thanks

 

[The Milkman]

Milk, it is easy to blame the Union but that is not always the case. I know of many regions that put it up to a vote and the members passed up on retiree healthcare (voted it down 4 times) to allocate the funds to their pension. Their pension contributions are higher than ours but they have to pay on the back end in retirement where we have a better healthcare plan. You see there is a lump of money in each region and since there are many healthcare laws that vary from state to state so it is up to the local and its members to decide where that money goes. It is a geographical and why it is so different everywhere.

The past contracts that I voted on showed so much per hour of a raise, so much per hour into the Pension, so much into benefits. Now those benefits at the time were for from what I can remember, were for current workers. What my beef is, When a new health & welfare plan was designed by UPS, they came around and offered it to us workers, a chance to chance plans. We sat through a meeting explaining the plan choices. I believe at the time it was to UPS's advantage to have members in Traditional plans to switch to mail order drugs etc. Plus the fact that the new plan provided dental & vision care which the Traditional plan at retirement was not offered. I hung it up 1/1/08. We were all told that we had to be on the NEW plan for 4 years prior to retirement. So I believe I switched possibly in 03 or 04. Now guys that had 10 years or more to go did not have to make a snap decision like I did because they still had time to think it over the next few years. Once word got around that it was better than the traditional plan, many started to slide over into the new plan. After all, being on a plan that you understood of 20 years,and knew how it worked, it took some deep thought to decide to change the plan you were in. I found that in the long run it was a lot better, and the low low cost we were told that we would pay till age 65 of $50.00 was a home run, now we see foul balls instead. At least from my past Locals point of view when the current workers took the bait and switch on the last contract getting a $400 monthly increase in their pension benefit ( Uh hello...Now a big chunk or most of it will go back to UPS in the form of higher monthly medical costs) So now the big increase in the pension is given back in the form of higher medical costs..So looks like UPS wins again

 

[The Milkman]

When have you seen the company be "forthright", and honest at the same time ?

They lie everyday.





In all fairness.... I'm sure, we don't know all the details.


Look at the vehicles in the parking lot.

Those aren't all management people and part-timers.

Just say'n....



-Bug-

 

[The Milkman]

When have you seen the company be "forthright", and honest at the same time ?

They lie everyday.





In all fairness.... I'm sure, we don't know all the details.


Look at the vehicles in the parking lot.

Those aren't all management people and part-timers.

Just say'n....



-Bug-

What kind of details you looking for? My posts are plain, simple and to the point concerning my situation and many others in the same boat which is taking on water. Current members get your life jackets strapped on

 

[The Milkman]

INHERITING-- The ultimate retirement plan --other than winning the lottery.
-----Not everyone has a nest egg waiting to be handed to them. When my Dad died my two brothers and I ended up with about $40,000 each. It was sad to see how little a mans whole life of hard work could be worth in the end. When my mother-in-law goes her estate will be split among 8 kids. Her living in a one bedroom duplex with very few possessions won't amount to anything. . On the other end of the scale my daughters mother-in-law recently died and left them tons of money. I've already hinted that we may be moving in with them .

I never had anything handed down to me, and I never counted on anyone but myself as far as survival goes. Some are lucky to get some $$ later in life. I was counting on like many others the medical plan proposed to me before I retired. What did I inherit? So the one thing I thought I could count on (for the most part) was not what I was expecting. In all fairness I do feel I have it a lot better than others, and for that I am grateful. I feel blessed, but again it is the Principal of the matter and manner in which mine and others benefits were changed no matter if it is $50 bucks a month or $500 bucks a month, it is still wrong for a Global Multi Billion Dollar Company to stick to those who made the Fat Cats in Atlanta have their waistlines expand at our expense, and let's not forget their HUGE bonus's that go along with being one of the "Good Ole Boys at The Table"

 

[The Milkman]

Were you "told" that your insurance would be $50/mo until you turned 65 or was it wrtten down in the SPD.

I remember H&H "telling" us that Teamcare mirrored the UPS plan. The SPD said something different.

I believe that the SPD said that you could keep the insurance until age 65 and at the current time it was $50/mo.

I do not believe that there were any guarantees that it would stay $50/mo until you turned 65.

It always amazes me that people take someone else's word for things instead of doing some research and seeing it for themselves in writing.

For the most part, when I reply to someone's question, I give an answer and quote the pertinent contractual language so that the person can see for themselves instead of taking someone's word for it.

Mug, take it from me....I was TOLD by HR people at a (paid for your time meetings) when this NEW plan came into play. I was told, IF I switch to the NEW plan, 4 years prior to retirement I would be paying $50.00 per Month till Age 65. I explained this in previous posts. What I would assume as many others did was that you pay $50.00 a month and you get dental & vision care also. Plain and simple. Not to complicated to understand what was expalined to us at the meetings, and also at the time I turned in my retirement papers. No they never said they guaranteed the $50.00 monthly cost at the time. You would of been thinking that yes it is an easy decision to take that plan, Now if they said'..."Future increase may be needed to offset higher medical costs years from now" Then I would not be posting my complaint. So for your own good, whatever you expect in YOUR retirement package just keep in mind what happened to us retirees who took to heart what we were told what we would receive in retirement, I did not see any "FINE" print in any and all the papers I read