To prevent a reduction in workforce, The United States Postal Service is now offering early retirement to eligible employees. This decision was cleared by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) under its Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) to offer Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) to the majority of non-bargaining workers throughout all branches of the Postal Service.

USPS employees who are eligible and choose to take advantage of this opportunity would be able to access their retirement funds early. This short-term deal allows employees to bypass years of waiting time and go into immediate annuity.

Here at Federal Benefits Service (FBS), we are interested in helping all federal employees, but specialize in those who are covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS).

Employees under (FERS) are eligible for a Special Retirement Supplement if they retire:

• At the Minimum Retirement Age (MRA) with 30 years of service.
• At age 60 with 20 years of service or;
• Upon involuntary or early voluntary retirement (age 50 with 20 years of service, or at any age with 25 years of service). Under the Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) or involuntary retirement, this supplement is only payable if you have reached your Minimum Retirement Age (MRA).

The major takeaway here is that federal and postal employees under Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) are eligible for voluntary early retirement if they are at least 50 years of age, with at least 20 years of service, or any age with a minimum of 25 years of service.

USPS emailed voluntary early retirement offers to eligible employees on March 4, and will also mail an additional hard-copy notification to employees’ home addresses.

Employees who decide to accept the offer must submit the required documents by April 16. The retirements will take effect April 30.

Please contact us at Federal Benefits Service for more information on how to optimize your retirement benefits.