Northwest Carpenters Individual Account Pension Plan

Avoiding a Permanant Break in Service 

This plan has one break in service rule that may help you avoid a permanent break in service:

Five Year Rule

You can avoid a permanent break in service if you have at least 500 hours of covered service in a plan year before incurring five consecutive one-year breaks in service. For example, if you have four consecutive one-year breaks in service (years in which you worked less than 500 covered hours), you must have at least 500 covered hours in the fifth year to avoid a permanent break in service. Reinstatement is retroactive to your first year out but does not include permanently forfeited service. The five year rule became effective January 1, 1989. Prior to January 1, 1989, the plan had the rule of parity but this rule did not impact participants because of the vesting requirements in place at that time.

The example below illustrates how the five year rule works. In this example, the participant is not vested in any subaccount in the plan and must work 500 or more covered hours in 2023 or he will experience five consecutive one-year breaks in service and forfeit all previous service. If, in 2023, he works 500 or more covered hours he will avoid a permanent break in service and will also become vested because he will have three years of credited service without experiencing a permanent break in service.

For additional information about the five year rule, please see Article 2.5.

Year	Covered Hours	Credited Service	Comment
2014	1,000	1.00	1.0 Total Credits
2015	700	.50	1.5 Total Credits
2016	0	0	Break in Service
2017	500	.50	2.0 Total Credits
2018	600	.50	2.5 Total Credits
2019	400	0	Break in Service
2020	0	0	Break in Service
2021	200	0	Break in Service
2022	400	0	Break in Service

Last Updated: 04/25/2023