About my $42,000…..it’s just an anecdote but in a lot of ways I had to face issues caused by this recent election and I really did have some angst.
In 1968 (yes, that long ago), I began a job working for Western Electric in Baltimore Merryland. I worked there through 1982 (this tiny fact is important) at which point WE was broken up by part of mighty AT&T and was phasing down.
WE paid for my college degree (do companies today offer tuition refund any more?) and I hung on for 15 years cause they said I had to to get a pension.
Now I knew there was a pension allegedly waiting for me from WE….which is now, pay close attention, ALCATEL. Used to be Lucent Technologies and before that Western Electric, okay, that detail now elaborated upon.
Through the years I would get these statements saying when I “retired” I would get about $500 or so a month. Well I liked that fact but after I had quadruple bypass surgery the SS sent me a note, to the effect that I had a possible pension payer out there, which was then, Lucent Technologies, that I should contact them. I was 57 years old at the time.
So I DID contact them as instructed but they said they do not pay for disability retirement so okay, but they got my new address in Delaware, my new name, all that….
Heck, I re-married three times since my WE days, plus moved to a new state, yada, yada.
So one day in mid-August I get this letter….”you now have the option of choosing a lump sum for your retirement from Alcatel (which they are now) and if you do, your lump sum payment would be $41,987.32.
Well this suited me just fine though I’d believe it when I see it.
…..more later...got some things to say about the, eh, Sun day morning talk shows.
Here’s my question about Israel, and it’s the question I think every Republican should be asking, publicly, loudly, over and over....
FOR WHAT GODAWFUL REASON ARE ROCKETS BEEN SHOT AT ISRAEL FROM THE GAZA STRIP....WHY? WHY? WHY?
Anybody remember Arafat?
If the pubs/opposition party had some kind of power they’d be able to make their case but it’s the same old story.
What has Israel done to the Gaza strip that they have a right to lob rockets over the borders?
Come on.....WE NEED BETTER PR/Spokesnoids on these matters.
What I had to go thru to get that lump sum payout is almost a sin.
Had to send in to get secret password to sign on that I’m interested, packet will come.
Packet came….one quadrillion papers to fill out...husband to sign notorized form agreeing that he’ll give up any pension death benefits, sign here, certified marriage c ertific ate...got from Annapolis Merryland, my birth certificate...on and on and on.
Meanwhile I hear out the side of my head that Obama plans to take over all American pension benefits being held overseas-Alcatel is now a FRENCH company. I’m freaking.
And the French, folks, are boobs….sheesh….terrible time doing this.
Then I must get a rollover account AHEAD of time or Alcatel will withold some $8,000 from my payout so did that, bank gets all cornfused.
“You will get your check by 10/16/12 if you fill out the forms right. If you donj’t then no check and Alcatel will NOT return any papers.”
So I did then forgot to sign paper verifying I do NOT owe child support anywhere….as an aside, THIS is a fine example where we have private businesses policiing the social laws and how big a pain it is. “You must return this with postmarked by 9/16 or you don’t get your money”.
Well I received this on….9/15! A Saturday! No way I could get it postmarked on that date but I figger, okay, since 9/16 is a weekend day, I got till Monday right?
So comes 10/16...NO CHECK!
I throw up arms….I knew it wouldn’t happen. I was hoping for what would not happen.
THEN, outta the blue, somebody from the ALCATEL calls me up…”We are very sorry, we should have processed your check, we will process it by 11/16”. Actually TWO people from Alcatel called me up, I don’t know why, both said same thing. And since it was THEIR mistake, they would give me an extra month’s interest.
Still I would believe when I see.
Last week bank calls me …”your money’s in”. AND I did get that extra month’s interest, heh, check was for $42,015.37.
All day, folks, all damn day at the bank, signing this check, signing that, signing papers, how to invest rollover, I want one thousand bucks cash…..which I got but wasn’t easy.
More on cash and husband’s input coming up…...
Wow same thing happened to me last year....a bank that I worked for years ago and had been bought up by numerous others sent me my pension in a lump sum of $24000.Didn't even know I was due it......I thought I was going to get a couple hundred a month when I turned 65