Issues

PEABODY FIREFIGHTER HONORED POSTHUMOUSLY

PEABODY FIREFIGHTER HONORED POSTHUMOUSLY

BY ANNE MARIE TOBIN, Lynn Item

NOVEMBER 19, 2021: PEABODY — There were plenty of smiles to go around Wednesday morning at the Fire Department headquarters on Lowell Street as Joseph P. DiFranco, one of Peabody’s most beloved and respected firefighters, was honored posthumously with the Professional Fire Fighters of Massachusetts (PFFM) Joseph J. Cantalupa Lifetime Service Award. 

DiFranco’s wife, Marie, accepted the award on behalf of “Big Joe” from PFFM President Richard MacKinnon Jr.

Congressman Brady Files WEP Reform Proposal

Congressman Brady Files WEP Reform Proposal

Marks 4th WEP/GPO Bill Pending Before House in 2021

NOVEMBER 8, 2021: In the course of a week, the number of bills pending before the US House of Representatives to either repeal or reform the Social Security Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) has doubled.

Breaking news on WEP & GPO

Breaking news on WEP & GPO

October 29, 2021: Weekly Report

By Shawn Duhamel

Every so often something unexpected happens in life that has the potential to become truly beneficial. In this case, I am referring to a new federal bill that proposes the biggest overhaul of Social Security since 1983.

Medicare Advantage Marketing Targets Retirees

Medicare Advantage Marketing Targets Retirees

Members Should Not Drop GIC or Municipal Insurance

October 29, 2021: Each fall, during the Medicare open enrollment period, a plethora of ads targeting retirees dominate the airwaves and mailboxes of seniors. This year calls from members to our Beacon Hill office with complaints about aggessive sales tactics have hit an all time high.

Mass. lawmakers relax decades-old rule to allow public retirees to work more while getting pensions

Mass. lawmakers relax decades-old rule to allow public retirees to work more while getting pensions

By Matt Stout, Globe Staff

Massachusetts legislators in recent weeks have loosened 40-year-old limits on how many hours government retirees can work for a public agency each year while still collecting their taxpayer-funded pension, realizing a change long sought by former employees but derided by critics as too generous.

A 5.9% COLA

A 5.9% COLA

10/15/2021 Weekly Update, By Shawn Duhamel

If you have read our September newsletter or watched/read any of my recent weekly updates, then you know that a major focus of our ongoing work is to make improvements to the annual COLA or cost-of-living adjustment. Wednesday’s news that the CPI is now 5.9% only bolsters our argument that more needs to be done in this area.

What about the WEP?

What about the WEP?

October 8, 2021

By, Shawn Duhamel

On Wednesday we went to press with the November edition of the Voice, which should begin to arrive in member’s mailboxes by end of the week of October 18th. In this edition we focus heavily on the pension cost-of-living -adjustment, making a strong case as to why our retirees deserve improved COLA benefits and how the retirement systems can fund the increase. The data and facts are clearly spelled out to help pass these improvements for the coming FY23.

Work progresses on Beacon Hill

Work progresses on Beacon Hill

October 1, 2021 Weekly Update: By Chief Executive Officer Shawn Duhamel

Before my brief hiatus in August, I reported to you that we anticipated a very busy fall. I’m happy to say that not only were we correct, but that things have been even busier than we would have thought. 

Benefit Check Delays Continue To Frustrate New Retirees

Benefit Check Delays Continue To Frustrate New Retirees

September 28, 2021: The "number-one problem" that Mass Retirees President Frank Valeri hears from his members is that it takes too long for newly retired public employees to collect their first monthly benefit check. Warning that the sizable gaps between a retirement date and a payment date put undue financial strain on workers at the end of their careers, Valeri urged lawmakers Tuesday to adopt reforms that guarantee delivery of at least partial checks by the due date. "These are the things that bother me," Valeri told the Public Service Committee.

President's Message: Share the Success!

September 2021 Voice: There is no question that the tremendous investment success of the Commonwealth and local retirement systems should be celebrated. When modern pension funding schedules were implemented in the mid-1980s, no one could have envisioned the high level of asset gains that would come to fruition over the ensuing 36 years.