Human Resources

Information for Employees Separating Service with Prince William County

Benefit eligible* employees who separate employment with Prince William County will receive a summary letter mailed to their home address on record to provide additional specific information about applicable insurance, retirement, or other benefit programs.

Resignation Notice

Employees who plan to resign from the competitive service are expected to notify their immediate supervisor, preferably in writing, at least ten (10) working days prior to their last day of work. The department and/or position may have additional notice requirements.

Exit Interview

Separating employees are encouraged to complete an Exit Interview Survey. All information collected is confidential.

Leave Payout

Employees may be eligible for a payout of unused leave depending upon available balance, retirement plan, and other criteria.

Final Pay Program

Employees who enrolled in the Final Pay Program will have 100% (or a portion depending on election) of their eligible leave payout rolled into their 457 and/or 401a defined contribution accounts, on a pre-tax basis, upon separating from the County.

Employees Who Opted Out of Final Pay Program

Employees who did not sign up for the program (or who opted for less than 100% to the Final Pay Program) will be paid their eligible leave typically two weeks after their final regular earnings pay check, or may request to have their leave rolled into their 457 on a tax-deferred basis (paperwork must be completed to roll to 457).

Eligible employees will receive their accrued leave as a separate paycheck if they opted out of the Final Pay Program.

Note: Employees who return to full or part-time benefited service within a year will have any remaining sick leave balance reinstated.

Benefit Coverage

Medical, Dental, and Vision

Coverage ends the last day of the month in which the employee separates. Depending on the date of separation, additional payroll deductions may be necessary to cover the final month of coverage.

Through the Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1980 (COBRA) eligible employees may continue the same group coverage for them and their covered dependents for a specific period of time at full cost. Specific coverage level and cost will be sent to the employee’s home address of record. Additional continuation options are available for employees with 15 or more years of service in a benefit-eligible position.

Prince William County Health Insurance Credit

Employees with greater than 15 years of eligible service may have access to the Prince William County Health Insurance Credit. Benefit eligible employees will receive more information sent to the their home address on record. Employees, who believe they meet this criteria, may also contact the Benefits Division in Human Resources to obtain more information.

Flexible Spending Accounts

Employee’s flexible spending accounts end as of the last day of employment. This means that employees (and covered dependents) may not incur additional expenses under the FSA beyond their last day of employment. Employees may continue to send in receipts to obtain reimbursement through September 30 following the end of the current plan year for expenses incurred up until their last day.

Through COBRA, employees can continue the Health Care FSA through June 30th of the plan year they separate. In order to do this they must make all future contributions on an after-tax basis. Specific information regarding cost will be sent to the their home address on record.

Retirement

Virginia Retirement System (VRS) (Employees separating full-time service only)

Retirees: Employees retiring from Prince William County should meet with a Benefits staff member to understand all available options and to obtain and complete all the appropriate paperwork. This may impact health and life insurance coverage decisions as well.

Non-Retirees: Employees separating employment, but not retiring, should make every effort to understand what options are available under the Virginia Retirement System.

·Employees with five or more years of VRS Service are considered vested, and may be eligible for a monthly retirement benefit in the future. If the employee decides to take a refund or rollover of the funds in their VRS account, they will no longer be eligible for a retirement benefit and will forfeit any service in their current plan. If the employee subsequently returns to work in a VRS-covered position, they will be hired under the retirement plan provisions in place at that time.

·Leaving accumulated VRS contributions with the Virginia Retirement System will allow employees to retain the VRS service credit that was earned as an employee. This VRS service credit will be added to any future service credit with a VRS-covered employer.

·To obtain more information about the VRS account, to update member information, or to request refund or rollover information please contact VRS at www.varetire.org or call 888-827-3847.

Hybrid 457 Plan (Hybrid Members Only)

In addition to the VRS account, Hybrid VRS members must also contact ICMA regarding the defined contribution portion of their retirement account at 1-877-327-5261 or www.varetire.org/hybrid.

Health Insurance Credit (Employees separating full-time service only)

Eligible employees may also receive a health insurance credit at the time of retirement. If you have 15 or more years of cumulative service (including part-time service time adjusted to full-time) with Prince William County, you are eligible for the PWC Retiree Health Insurance Credit Plan when you retire from either the VRS or the PWC Police & Fire Supplemental Retirement Plan. This additional money is a monthly lifetime benefit that reimburses retirees for health insurance premiums.

Supplemental Retirement Plan (Full-time Police and Fire & Rescue Sworn Employees Only)

Police and Fire & Rescue sworn employees have an additional Supplemental Retirement Plan. If the employee has 20+ years as a sworn Police Officer or a sworn Firefighter, they are eligible for a retirement benefit from this plan; if the employee has LESSthan 20 years of service they may elect to rollover the funds into a qualified plan or request a refund (minus taxes and potential penalties). Please contact a member of the Benefits Team (x6640) with PWC Human Resources for more information.

County 401a (MPP) & 457 Defined Contribution Plans

Upon retirement or resignation, eligible employees will be reported to Empower (the County's Supplemental Retirement Plans vendor) as having been separated. No action, by the employee, is necessary to leave money invested with Empower. If employees prefer to transfer or withdraw funds from their Empower account, please contact Empower directly to discuss distribution options. To reach customer service representatives with Empower contact 800-701-8255 or www.empowermyretirement.com.

Life Insurance

To convert the Basic group life insurance coverage to an individual policy, employees must contact Securian Life Insurance directly at 800-441-2258 or go to https://web1.lifebenefits.com/lbwcm/pd/vrs for a conversion packet (VRS-35 form). The conversion form must be returned to PWC Human Resources Department within 31 days of the separation date. Securian Life Insurance Company will notify employees directly regarding the conversion policy and premium payment.

Retirees Only:

All retirees may keep their optional group life insurance after retirement at group rates if they have been enrolled in the program for at least 60 months. The VRS-39R, VRS Retiree Optional Life Continuation Form, must be returned to Securian within the first 30 days of retirement in order to keep this benefit. For coverage or payment questions please contact Securian at 1-800-441-2258.

Additional Items to Consider

In addition to the items above, please be aware of the following

·Change of Home Address:

o Employees with a change of address after leaving employment with Prince William County should contact HR at [email protected], or call us at (703) 792-6640. This information will ensure that the employees receives important documents such as the W-2 form.

·Credit Union Loans

o Employees with an active loan and a repayment plan should contact the Credit Union directly to make arrangements for future payments.

*Employees who were not employed for a long enough period of time to qualify, or pay for, benefits may not be eligible for all benefit plans offered.

We have made every attempt to ensure the accuracy of the information presented. However, if there is any discrepancy between the benefit descriptions and the insurance contracts or other legal documents, the legal documents will always govern.