Benefits May 17, 2012
S.C. Senate Passes Gentler Version of Pension Reform
May 17, 2012 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - The South Carolina Senate approved a pension reform plan with fewer changes than the state House proposal.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
The Senate bill allows current employees to continue factoring unused vacation and sick days into their benefit calculations at retirement, according to the Associated Press. It also continues to base benefits on employees’ final three years of pay, rather than using a five-year average, unlike the House bill (see “S.C. House Approves Pension Reform Bill”).
However, similar to the House version, under the Senate proposal new employees would have to work longer to receive full benefits; workers’ age and years of service must equal 90.
All employees would have to contribute more toward their retirement — 1.5% more phased in over three years.