INTRODUCTION
The Alliance of Grandfathered Retirees and Employees (AGRE) was formed to provide a means for both Grandfathered retirees and employees to come together to work toward equitable and secure retirement benefits. In 1998, the Department of Energy (DOE) as part of their contractual strategy separated the contract for management and integration of environmental restoration from the other prime contracts in Oak Ridge. Subsequent to this separation the benefit packages for workers at the Oak Ridge K-25 Site, the Paducah Site and the Portsmouth Site were also separated. In doing so, the DOE designated this group of workers as Grandfathered employees. The intent of this designation was to ensure that the benefits of these workers would continue to be protected. Since the original separation of benefits, Grandfathered retirees and employees have steadily seen their medical premiums cost rise and their retirement benefits fall below those received by the workers at the Y-12 Plant (Y-12) and the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL). The primary objectives of AGRE are to obtain and maintain pension and other benefits that are equivalent to those received by workers at the Y-12 and the ORNL and to safeguard the Pension Trust Fund from which retirement benefits are derived.
POSITION
1. The Bechtel Jacobs Company LLC (BJC) Health and Welfare Plans should be integrated with theY-12/ORNL plan to dollar leverage pricing and administration fees. The addition of this group of workers would not increase the cost of Health and Welfare Benefits toY-12 and ORNL workers and would allow improved leverage to provide for cost reductions while maintaining current benefits. Given the current differences in the Y-12/ORNL Health and Welfare Plan cost and that of the segregated Grandfathered employee plan, DOE could save millions of dollars by combining these plans. In addition to the cost savings associated with the integrating the two administrations, there is also the potential for additional cost savings through leveraging pricing and fees. The DOE would also see a cost savings from the dissolution of the BJC fiduciary committee: The Benefits and Investments Committee, who would no longer be necessary to travel (lodging, rental cars, per diem expenses, etc.) from other parts of the United States four times a year. Taking this action could save DOE millions of dollars while providing a more stable and secure benefit package for Grandfathered employees.
2. The Pension Plan for Grandfathered Employees should be integrated under the Master Group Trust with Y-12 and ORNL. This transition would not alter the current pension plans for Y-12 or ORNL employees. The Y-12 and ORNL trusts are separate and distinct, but managed together under a Master Group Trust. The Grandfathered Employees Pension Plan Trust could also be separate and distinct while managed under the Master Group Trust. This integration of Trusts under the Master Group Trust could save millions of dollars in administration fees, investment management fees, Trust fees, and custodial fees. It would also allow for assets to be leveraged to stabilize investment earnings in the global economy. Since the segregation of the Grandfathered Pension Plan Trust from the Y-12/ORNL Master Group Trust, the Grandfathered Pension Plan funding percentage has consistently fallen while the Y-12/ORNL funding level has been maintained at well above 100%. This integration would reduce administrative cost and improve investment potential and should allow the Grandfathered employees funding level to return to acceptable levels. Again, by integrating the BJC Pension Plan Trust with the Y-12 and ORNL, Master Group Trust, cost savings will occur by the consolidation of the fiduciary bodies eliminating the BJC Benefits and Investments Committee.
3. The Pension Plan for Grandfathered Employees should be amended to include removal of the 30-year-cap of retirement calculation and the spouse option limit of 2 percent should be added. These actions have already been taken at Y-12 and ORNL. It should also be noted that the majority of many Grandfathered employees worked at the Y-12 and/or ORNL throughout their career to foster the peace of our great nation and all Grandfathered employees are entitled to the same retirement benefits as Y-12 and ORNL employees and Grandfathered employees should not be discriminated against.
4. The BJC Grandfathered Employees Health and Welfare Trust Administration Premium Surplus Refunds should be investigated to determine why the Health and Welfare Trust Plan participants and their beneficiaries have not been reimbursed or given premium surplus holidays over recent years. This surplus amounts to millions of dollars representing monies taken from employees for medical premiums that legally should have been returned to employees and their beneficiaries under the Multiple Employee Welfare Arrangement (MEWA) and Health and Welfare Trust.
SUMMARY
The above noted positions are considered necessary actions to prevent discrimination of Grandfathered Employees (former Cold War Era workers); to ensure that Grandfathered retirees and employees are treated in an equitable manner and to ensure that the Grandfathered Employees Health and Welfare Trust and Pension Plan Trust are maintained and funded securely for the participants and their beneficiaries. When DOE established the definition of Grandfathered Employees by separation of one of these three sites, they did so to protect the benefits of a group of workers who had sacrificed much to support our nation. Recent events have demonstrated a grave need to alter the current path for managing our benefits. In a few years, the current managing contractor will cease to exist. Action is needed now to ensure that we will have an equitable and secure benefit package in the future by consolidation and integration with the two sister sites in Oak Ridge.
