On August 17, 2006, President George W. Bush signed into law the Pension Protection Act (PL 109-280). The 907-page federal law has been referred to as the most comprehensive reform of the nation's pension law since the enactment of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) of 1974 (Lucas, 2008). This paper will examine the major…

The 1986 amendments to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act and tax reforms from that year will require changes in retirement policies in higher education, especially pension plans, because of the extension of nondiscrimination rules to all tax-deferred annuities. (Author/MSE)

The impact of the Age Discrimination in Employment Act Amendments of 1978 (ADEA) and possible options for adjusting to the impact were estimated for members institutions of the Consortium on Financing Higher Education (COFHE). Questionnaire information was gathered on active, departed, and retired faculty from 27 individual COFHE institutions.…

Two proposals before Congress threaten to offset the delicate balance in pension plan design. The significance of the normal retirement feature in plan design, some possible program design changes, and how the pension arrangements of higher education institutions would be affected are discussed. (MLW)

Age and sex discrimination are addressed in two newsletter articles. In "Age Discrimination in Faculty Employment," Stuart H. Bompey reviews employment litigation issues and their impact on the collective bargaining process. The Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA) stipulates that individuals may be mandatorily retired at age 70;…

Changes in higher education employee benefit plans brought about by the extension of the mandatory retirement age to 70 are the focus of the monograph. Chapter one summarizes the volume and presents some major recommendations that institutions may find helpful in benefit and personnel planning. Chapter two sketches the meaning of the new law (1978…

Changes in retirement patterns at colleges and universities can be expected because of demographic reasons and because of federal and state legislation uncapping mandatory retirement. Institutional policies that will encourage reluctant older faculty to retire need to address the three fundamental components of successful employee retirement: (1)…

College administrators are beginning to think about the impact on institutional personnel management, and perhaps the whole tenure system, of the 1994 implementation of a federal law ending mandatory faculty retirement at 70. (MSE)

Proposed alternatives to the current tenure system are administratively, legally, and ethically unsatisfactory. If uncapping the retirement of faculty presents significant problems, which is not yet clear, the academic community would be better advised to explore voluntary early retirement programs and policies. (Author/MSE)

There is in the United States an increasing interest in pensions for teachers. In several cities and States some form of pension system has been adopted. Public opinion on this subject is, however by no means unanimous. Many doubt the wisdom or justice extending to one class of public servants a consideration and help withheld from another class.…

The American Association of University Professors' Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure reports on possible results on faculty salary structure, the tenure system, and retirement options of legislation uncapping the mandatory retirement age of college faculty. Considerations for institutions to make in adjusting personnel policies are…

A study of the historical connection between pension, mandatory retirement age, and retirement behavior in higher education suggests that raising the mandatory retirement age from 65 to 70 will have relatively small, short-term effects on the retirement timing of tenured faculty members. (Author/MSE)

Because of the end of mandatory retirement for faculty in January 1994, colleges and universities are looking at ways to motivate faculty to retire before age 70. A variety of incentives are being considered, including early retirement bonuses, allowing retirees to teach courses and keep a campus office, and toughening tenure evaluations. (MSE)

Mandatory retirement of college faculty, as affected by the amendments to the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), is considered in relation to the changing faculty age profile, retirement strategies to cope with ADEA, and other issues under ADEA. ADEA raised the mandatory retirement age from 65 to 70, and tenured faculty were exempted…

The results of more than two-and-one-half years of study by the United States Department of Labor on the effects of the Age Discrimination in Employment Amendments on older workers' retirement plans indicate that removing employment obstacles facing older workers will increase labor force participation rates and, in turn, help refinance the Social…