If you are retiring or leaving your work place, you should call the Local 338 pension department at (516) 294-1338 ext. 305 and request an application for your pension benefit.

To be eligible for a pension, you have to have at least 5 years of vesting service – that is, you must have worked at least 1000 hours for at least 5 calendar years under a collective bargaining agreement for an employer contributing into the Local 338 Retirement Fund.

There are 9 types of retirement benefits:

1. Normal
2. Early Full
3. Early Reduced
4. Special Early Reduced
5. Disability
6. Vested
7. Vested-Spouse
8. Survivor-Spouse
9. Divorced Spouse

Different Pension rules determine which pension benefit you are eligible for and what your pension benefit will be. (Consult your Plan booklet for more information – the “Local 338 Retirement Fund Summary Plan Description.”)

Once you mail the application back to the union office, the Pension Department looks at the your record, makes sure the application is filled out correctly, that all necessary birth and/or marriage certificates are filed, computes the vesting and benefit service years, and at the next Board of Trustees Meeting, presents the applications for benefits to the Trustees for their approval.

After the Trustees meeting, the Pension Department sends letters to the applicants informing them how much, and when they are going to start receiving their benefit.

Pension benefits are always paid at the end of each month. You should take advantage of direct deposit into your bank account, rather than waiting to receive a check in the mail – it’s much faster and more secure.

If you are eligible for the Local 338 Supplemental Retiree Health coverage and/or want to contribute to the Local 338 PAC, you can also arrange for automatic deductions right from your monthly Pension benefit. That way, for example, you won’t lose track of making a payment or risk your payment getting lost in the mail. (See Links to Forms, for forms to complete to direct the Fund Office to make such deductions on your behalf.)

If you have any questions about your Pension Benefits, feel free to contact the Pension Department at (516) 294-1338 extension 305. All forms must be mailed to the Local 338 offices at 1505 Kellum Place Mineola, New York 11501.

Click here for Supplemental Retiree Health Coverage form

Click here to to join the Local 338 retirees PAC.

Click here for to apply for Direct Deposit of Your Pension

Click here for the Federal Tax Withholding Forms