The Trustees of the Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Trust approved major benefit improvements at their January 2024 board meetings which took place this week on January 8 and 9, 2024. 

Contribution Accrual Rate

• Effective Jan. 1, 2024, the WCTPT trustees approved an extension of the 1.6% bonus accrual rate through Dec. 31, 2025.
• This accrual rate applies to all participants regardless of the years of service the participant has earned.
• The accrual rate will return to 1.2% as of Jan. 1, 2026.
• The accrual rate for earning non-contributory service remains at 1.2%.

Child Survivor Benefit

• The trustees also expanded the child survivor benefit in three important ways:
  1. Effective July 1, 2024, the WCTPT trustees will extend the survivor benefit to include dependent children up to age 22. Currently the survivor benefit is payable to dependents up to age 18.
  2. Also, the child survivor benefit is being expanded to cover units at a basic contribution rate of $0.10 or higher so that the Teamster family of an eligible participant with an average contribution rate from $0.10 through $0.99 can qualify for a benefit of $1,000 per month.
  3. For units at an average contribution rate of $1.00 or higher, an eligible participant’s family can qualify for a child survivor benefit of $2,000, double the current maximum monthly amount per family.
• These changes all apply to families of participants who die on or after July 1, 2024.