Hello Phoenix, goodbye leave forms! You read that right, upon the launch of Phoenix in 2023, leave forms will be a thing of the past!

For SAM II employers or non-SAM II employers using the expanded file format, Phoenix is designed to capture leave events and other status changes automatically from your payroll system. This efficiency in Phoenix will eliminate the need for you to do the double work of entering leave into your payroll system and then reporting the leave separately to MOSERS. In addition to saving you time, this feature will greatly benefit your employees' by significantly reducing the possibility of variance between your records and the employees' official MOSERS service record. Your employees' future pension is based on their total service credit and average salary. In other words, the greater their service credit, the greater their lifetime pension.

Thus, it is essential that your employees experiencing valid leave events, such as leave due to illness, receive full service and salary credit towards their future pension. Capturing this information automatically, but still giving you the ability to make manual adjustments, if needed, will strengthen data reporting to MOSERS and help ensure the accuracy of employee benefits. For additional reference, check out this high-level overview of the process map of Capturing Leave Events in Phoenix. Keep in mind that this is just a “sneak peek,” and we will provide you with training and resources before Phoenix goes live.

Our data integrity specialist, Cindy Barbarick, is retiring on June 1^st after 22 years and 7 months of service with MOSERS. Many of you have interacted with Cindy over the years in addressing new member records, transfers, leaves of absence, and terminations for your employees. Cindy was a delight to work with, and we will miss her dedicated service. We wish her the best in her retirement years!

In addition to emailing employers@mosers.org, you can now reach an employer services analyst directly by phone by calling MOSERS at (800) 827-1063 or (573) 632-6100 and press option 2. This option is for human resource and payroll representatives at MOSERS-covered employers who have questions specific to the administration of their employees' benefits through MOSERS. Individual members of MOSERS with questions about their own benefits should use option 1 to reach a benefit counselor.

If you have accessed the employer login recently, you may have noticed a warning message indicating that a two-step verification method to access the employer login is coming soon. This additional security feature, designed to increase the protection of sensitive member data, will take effect the week of May 23^rd. Once in effect, you will be required to enter your password and a verification code to gain access. The verification code will be sent to the work email address associated with your MOSERS employer login. If preferred, there will also be an option to have the code sent to your mobile device. If you need any assistance logging in, please call an employer services analyst at (800) 827-1063 or (573) 632-6100 and press option 2, or email employers@mosers.org. 

Please share with your employees!

Before receiving a benefit payment from MOSERS, IRS rules require a “bona fide termination” of a member’s employment. For purposes of MOSERS Board Rules, a "bona fide termination" occurs when:

• They have completely severed employment;
• They have not entered into a prearranged agreement (written or oral), prior to retirement, with the State of Missouri or any MOSERS-covered employer for subsequent employment on any basis (full-time, part-time, or other); and
• They are not subsequently employed with the State of Missouri or any MOSERS-covered employer on any basis (full-time, part-time, or other) within 30 days after their employment with their prior employer has ended.

For more information please see our  FAQs on Termination and Reemployment Rules and our Termination and Reemployment Rules flyer

Please note that if they do not have a bona fide separation of service, their retirement will be null and void, meaning they will not receive their pension payments.

We appreciate all the work that you do for your employees and know that your time is valuable! We want to remind you how important it is to submit termination forms on time. We need accurate and timely submissions to pay refunds of contributions to members. Additionally, we are unable to properly calculate a member’s Final Average Pay (FAP) without an accurate termination date. If submissions are not made on time, it can delay the retirement process for your employees and will create errors on your error reports. Thank you for your continued support in making these processes smooth and efficient for you and your employees.

We need your help with LTD submissions!

Please remember to submit the simplified and updated Long Term Disability Employer Statement to ltdmosers@standard.com when you know your employee is applying for long-term disability (LTD) benefits.

Please advise your employee to provide their HR representative's contact information to The Standard when they call, (844) 505-6026, to initiate their LTD claim.

On occasion, the employee neglects to provide the employer contact information to The Standard. This causes a delay in the review of the claim. To assist with this process, MOSERS is collecting the contact information for the individual(s) responsible for completing the Employer Statement at each covered employer. As such, please email the name, phone number, and email address of the person best suited to complete the Employer Statement at your agency to employers@mosers.org. Please also include the contact person's department, agency, and organization number.

For more information on the LTD application process, please watch the LTD webinar put together by The Standard to illustrate the most effective way to file for LTD benefits.

Our 2^nd annual MOSERS Month wrapped up at the end of April and it was a success! We truly could not have done it without the help from all of you! From all of us at MOSERS, thank you for spreading the word and encouraging your employees to participate! See you next year!

Glossary of Terms – April 2022

New Employee Orientation brochure – April 2022

Accessing Your Annual Benefit Statement – March 2022

Board of Trustees Roles and Responsibilities – March 2022

MOSERS Board Member Candidate Information – Active Member Board Seat – March 2022

Divorce and Your Pension Benefit brochure – March 2022

Total Compensation Calculator – January 2022

Destination Retirement Checklist (University Employees) – January 2022

Destination Retirement Checklist – January 2022

For more information, please visit MOSERS' Online Library: https://www.mosers.org/library

Phoenix Sneak Peek – Payroll Reports

April is MOSERS Month!

Employer Training Webinar

Termination and Reemployment Rules

Proper LTD Submissions

Board Election Nominations Now Open

Recently Updated Resources

You may be familiar with our Aged Accounts Receivable (AAR) error report. The AAR report is one of the ways we reconcile discrepancies in service, salary, and contribution data between MOSERS member records and payroll files received from employers.

The most common discrepancy found is our records reflecting that a member is actively employed, but no pay was reported for that employee on the last payroll file. This likely means the employee is on a leave of absence or terminated, but we have not been notified of such. Another common discrepancy is our records reflecting that an employee has life insurance, but the premium was not deducted from their last paycheck. This could mean the employee recently added coverage and there wasn’t enough time to start the deduction before payroll was processed. These are just a couple of examples of how a discrepancy can occur, but many other examples can be noted.

Fortunately, only 1% of member records require reconciliation after payroll uploads. However, when you consider that there are over 40,000 active state employees covered under MOSERS, this process requires a significant amount of attention each month. Although most state employees are paid twice per month, we currently receive payroll files only once per month. This lag in receiving data delays the process of resolving discrepancies. With the implementation of Phoenix, MOSERS will receive data more frequently. This will lead to increased efficiency and accuracy, and ultimately, better customer service.

Phoenix will eliminate the need for the AAR report. Instead, payroll files will be uploaded to Phoenix as they occur. You, our valued partners, will be asked to reconcile any identified discrepancies before the final submission of payroll to us. Ultimately, Phoenix will facilitate a more efficient exchange of information between MOSERS and its covered employers, resulting in more timely corrections to member data and improved accuracy of member records.

In this brief Prepare Payroll Report video, which applies to SAM II and non-SAM II employers alike, we demonstrate how Phoenix will alert you to potential discrepancies before payroll is finalized. Keep in mind that this is just a quick preview, and thorough training will be provided prior to the implementation of Phoenix.

MOSERS Month is officially here!

Encourage your employees to follow along with our weekly emails and choose their own fairy tale adventure while watching the fun-filled videos about their MOSERS benefits.

Did you receive your very own MOSERS Month poster to display around the office? If not, you can download one now!

University Employers – Recording Available

Follow the link below to view the recording of the University Employers webinar held on March 24, 2022. To register to watch the recording, enter your name and email address. To move through the recording, use the progress bar at the bottom:

University Employers - RECORDING

00 – 04 min: Introduction, Resources

04 – 31 min: Colleges and Universities Retirement Plan (CURP)

31 – 37 min: Part-Time Employees

37 – 44 min: Termination and Reemployment Rules

44 – 49 min: Retirement Eligible Pay

49 – 60 min: MO Deferred Comp

Download webinar handouts.

Content was presented by Lisa Campbell, Educator; Jamie Mullen, Employer Services Manager; Shelley Lehmann, Employer Services Analyst; and Brooke Rowden, Defined Contribution Plans Education Coordinator

This month, active employees who are within one year of normal retirement eligibility or already eligible to retire will receive a letter reminding them of the termination and reemployment rules. Additionally, we have programmed for an automatic reminder letter to be sent to active employees when they reach the following milestones: one year before early retirement eligibility, two years before normal retirement eligibility, and one year before normal retirement eligibility.

We hope these reminder letters will assist your employees in complying with the termination and reemployment rules, which state that before receiving a benefit payment from MOSERS, IRS rules require a “bona fide termination” of a member’s employment. For purposes of MOSERS Board Rules, a "bona fide termination" occurs when:

• They have completely severed employment;
• They have not entered into a prearranged agreement (written or oral), prior to retirement, with the State of Missouri or any MOSERS-covered employer for subsequent employment on any basis (full-time, part-time, or other); and
• They are not subsequently employed with the State of Missouri or any MOSERS-covered employer on any basis (full-time, part-time, or other) within 30 days after their employment with their prior employer has ended.

For more information, please see our FAQs on Termination and Reemployment Rules and our Termination and Reemployment Rules flyer

Please note that if they do not have a bona fide separation of service, their retirement will be null and void, meaning they will not receive their pension payments.

We need your help with  LTD submissions!

Please remember to submit the simplified and updated Long Term Disability Employer Statement to ltdmosers@standard.com when you know your employee is applying for long-term disability (LTD) benefits.

Please advise your employee to provide their HR representative's contact information to The Standard when they call (844) 505-6026, to initiate their LTD claim.

On occasion, the employee neglects to provide the employer contact information to The Standard. This causes a delay in the review of the claim. To assist with this process, MOSERS is collecting the contact information for the individual(s) responsible for completing the Employer Statement at each covered employer. As such, please email the name, phone number, and email address of the person best suited to complete the Employer Statement at your agency to employers@mosers.org. Please also include the contact person's department, agency, and organization number.

For more information on the LTD application process, please watch the LTD webinar put together by The Standard to illustrate the most effective way to file for LTD benefits.

Remind employees that the nomination period for candidates interested in running for the MOSERS Board of Trustees is now open! Voting will take place in August this year. Two active members, and one retired member, will be elected. They will begin serving a four-year term in January 2023.

The Nomination Process for Active Members

• Declaration: To declare your interest in being a Board candidate, you must first fill out the  Nominating Petition Part I paper form in the Active Member Board Seat booklet. By providing the required personal information, you are expressing your interest in being a member of the MOSERS Board.
• Signatures: You are required to obtain the signatures of at least 100 active or inactive vested MOSERS members. You can submit signatures through the online signature platform or the Nominating Petition Part II paper form in the Active Member Board Seat booklet, which is available to print and send back with signatures to MOSERS by June 15, 2022.
• Background and Qualifications: The Nominating Petition Part I requests biographical information, including your qualifications for a position on the Board of Trustees. It must not exceed 300 words and should include information you believe to be relevant to your candidacy for election.
• All nominations are due to MOSERS by June 15, 2022

Accessing Your Annual Benefit Statement – March 2022

Board of Trustees – Roles and Responsibilities – March 2022

MOSERS Board Member Candidate Information – Active Member Board Seat – March 2022

Divorce and Your Pension Benefit brochure – March 2022

Total Compensation Calculator – January 2022

Destination Retirement Checklist (University Employees) – January 2022

Destination Retirement Checklist – January 2022

For more information, please visit MOSERS' Online Library: https://www.mosers.org/library

Phoenix Sneak Peek - New Hires

April is MOSERS Month!

Board Election Nominations Now Open

Proper LTD Submissions

Recently Updated Resources

When hiring a new employee, your first step with MOSERS, though indirectly, is determining the benefit eligibility of the position. An employee hired into a benefit-eligible position is entitled to service and salary accruals towards the calculation of their future pension and, depending on the agency, may also be eligible for life and long-term disability insurance through MOSERS. Therefore your entry of a new benefit-eligible employee into SEBES establishes the employee’s official record under MOSERS.

The implementation of Phoenix will not change the new hire process as it relates to MOSERS. Phoenix will consume data from SEBES just as our current system does, and benefit-eligible employees entered into SEBES will automatically be recorded under MOSERS. However, a unique feature of Phoenix called the SAM II Daily Feed will improve the accuracy of service, salary, and contribution data of employees paid through the SAM II system by double-checking the benefit-eligibility status of employees.

If you are a SAM II employer representative, please take a moment to view this short demo of the SAM II Daily Feed in Phoenix.

The wait is almost over! We are excited to launch the second annual MOSERS Month in April. Our team has been working hard to create engaging emails and activities for employees to help them learn more about their benefits. It will be a month filled with lots of retirement information and fairytale-themed adventures! Take a moment to look at our MOSERS Month Employer Checklist and encourage your employees to participate.

Did you receive your very own MOSERS Month poster to display around the office? If not, you can download one now!