Terminating the Employment Relationship

c. Other Retirement Systems There are public retirement systems other than PERS and the ’37 Act. Moreover, there are countless disability insurance policies available on the open market. Each of these retirement systems and/or policies have their own rules. There are numerous optional benefits that may be provided as well as legislation that has been adopted that applies to only some agencies. An analysis of all of the systems and every option and permutation under each is beyond the scope of this workbook. Consequently, this workbook addresses more common disability retirement benefits available under the PERL and ’37 Act. 2. E LIGIBILITY Regardless of whether an employee is actually disabled from the performance of his or her duties, the employee may not retire for a disability unless he or she meets the minimum eligibility criteria. An employer must first determine if an employee is eligible for a disability retirement before determining whether an employee qualifies for a disability retirement. a. PERS Generally, to be eligible for a non-industrial disability retirement, a local miscellaneous or a local safety member of a contracting agency must be credited with five years of PERS service. 164 Any local safety member (excluding local prosecutors, public defenders, and public defender investigators) incapacitated for the performance of duty as a result of an industrial disability shall be retired for disability regardless of age or amount of credited service. 165 Contracting agencies may elect by contract amendment to allow local miscellaneous members to be retired for disability due to incapacity resulting from an industrial injury and without regard to service credited. 166 b. ’37 Act To be eligible for a non-industrial disability retirement, a member must have completed five years of service, regardless of age. If the member’s incapacity is a result of injury or disease arising out of and in the course of the member’s employment, and such employment contributes substantially to such incapacity, then the member may be retired for disability regardless of years of service or age. 167 3. D OES THE M EMBER Q UALIFY ? Qualification for a disability retirement depends on the nature and extent of the member’s disability and the employer’s ability to provide permanent light duty modifications. For PERS employers, a member is qualified for a disability retirement if he or she is substantially incapacitated from the performance of his or her usual duties for the public agency. 168 “‘Disability’ and ‘incapacity for performance of duty’ as a basis of retirement, mean disability of permanent or extended duration, which is expected to last at least 12 consecutive months or will result in death, as determined by the board, or in the case of a local safety member by the governing body of the contracting agency employing the member, on the basis of

Terminating the Employment Relationship ©2019 (s) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 57