Your Retirement Advocate Since 1973

We are ARSCE – Association of Retired Seattle City Employees, with an emphasis on retired folks and their families and friends. We are the advocate for members of the Seattle Employee Retirement System, keeping an eye on actions at the local and state level which might affect us.  And, we encourage retirees and active employees to keep in touch through our bi-monthly ARSCE News, and our quarterly luncheons.   The News covers City Retirement System issues, and includes columns and articles by active and retired employees featuring everything from travel experiences to other employee get-togethers, to books and films, and to a variety of other items of interest to retirees.  Please join us for our quarterly luncheons – a great chance to meet up with old friends and associates – and enjoy the ARSCE News, our bi-monthly publication. The News will keep you current on City Retirement System issues, and also includes columns and articles by active and retired employees featuring everything from travel experiences to other employee get-togethers, to books and films, and to a variety of other items of interest to retirees.

We maintain this website to provide users with information about ARSCE.  You’ll find the ARSCE event calendar, information about membership and the luncheons, names and contact information for the officers, and a lot of documentation, including our Bylaws, past issues of the ARSCE News, and link stop other information sources of interest to retirees.

Enjoy this website, and if you are a current or retired City of Seattle employee, we hope you are a member or that you will consider becoming a member.

ARSCE President John Masterjohn’s message, January/February 2020:

It’s November 15, 2019 as I write this so you will be reading this (or not) at the end of December. I hope I saw you at the Christmas Luncheon and that we all had a fabulous meal and great fun with the gift exchange. I hope you all know that the gift exchange is voluntary. I know it’s too late now, but save this article for next year. 

SCERS (Seattle City Employees’ Retirement System) put out a member communications list so here are some things they have done this year to improve communications:

• Conducted several off-site seminars, increasing training and access to information to field workers and others. 
• Updated majority of forms and created cover letters.
• Updated and streamlined members’ handbooks (26 pages) and FAQs (8 pages). FAQs [frequently asked questions] are now searchable online in the drop down menu.
• Staff training on new forms and documents, customer service refresher training for the staff, and created and distributed new employee handbooks.
• Cross department communications:
• Established processes & hand-offs for communicating medical benefits information
• Established deferred compensation & SCERS working group to improve intersection/member experience                                       
• Created a one-page guide for members on various things to consider when nearing retirement and where they should go for more information.

So, this doesn’t cover all the issues under the members communications list, but the rest should be available from SCERS.

There were 49 retirements in the month of September 2019, which seems like a lot, but maybe not.

Jeff Davis [SCERS Executive Director] reported that there was an article in Reuters news regarding climate change-related shareholder proposals. The article highlighted SCERS’ engagement with BlackRock. SCERS had put BlackRock on watch due to several concerns by SCERS that they had supported no climate change-related shareholder proposals. BlackRock is now supporting 10% of these shareholder proposals which demonstrates that SCERS is having an impact.

Paige Alderete informed the Board that the staff have updated the SCERS website with FAQs (frequently on the impact of mortality table changes). Based on staff analysis, the majority of members are not going to be impacted.

Well, this article is long enough so I will end with that.

John

p.s. I hope everyone has a great holiday and a wonderful New Year.

Contact Mr. Masterjohn at president@arsce.org