December 20, 2011

QUESTION:

I retired from ATT 10 years ago and had a telephone concession monthly, even though I did not live in the ATT service area. They took away my monthly stipend for having basic service and replaced it with a long distance concession, which in these days, is worthless. Telco Retirees was working on this issue. Is this issue not worth pursuing anymore? If so, I can combine my phone line with other services and reduce my bill with Verizon.

Please respond even if “Tel Concession is a dead issue”.

Dennis Allen

ANSWER:

There was a class action lawsuit filed in the Federal District Court in San Antonio, Texas in 2005. This case has progressed through the Court. It came to trial and the initial judge issued a decision in favor of the plaintiff and the class stating that this was an ERSA case and that AT&T could not eliminate it, and along with that decision, he scheduled another trial to determine the limit of liability of the defendant (AT&T) and determine what action would be necessary for the future. Unfortunately, before the second trial started he died and the case was assigned to another judge. When it finally came to trial, the defendant (AT&T) asked him to reconsider the decision of the first judge. The second judge stopped all action on the case and then on January, 14^th, 2011, reversed the first judge’s decision and found in favor of the defendant (AT&T) stating that concessions were a welfare benefit and could be changed by the defendant at anytime. The case has been appealed to the 5^th Circuit Court of Appeals. Appellate briefs have been completed and are before the 5^th Circuit Court.

Currently, we are waiting for the 5^th Circuit Court to hold a hearing or issue a decision.

Larry Love, Director- TelCo Retirees Association

QUESTION:

Recently I had occasion to buy a new Modem for my computer.
My old Modem was from the first days when Pacific Bell was absorbed by SBC Communications.
I went to the ATT Store and was told that they couldn’t give me an employee discount because I didn’t have a cell phone account for them to access.
I told them I had an ATT Telephone account but that didn’t do it for them.
I guess all retirees should have a cell phone – Hunh !
They did give me a store discount so I wasn’t entirely unhappy.
Have you ever heard of this requirement ?

ANSWER:

 In response to your question, AT&T stores do not have the ability to independently validate and confirm your retiree status. If you had a wireless account, your account details would have indicated that you are a retiree.
AT&T provides a discount on accessories for wireless devices only in our retail stores. Any additional discount for other landline products should not be provided through a company retail store. In your case the service agent made an exception and offered you a discount for your inconvenience.
You are eligible for a Wireless discount of 19% off the monthly recurring charge on eligible plans and up to 40% off accessories, but these discounts can only be activated through the AT&T Premier website you can access at: http://www.att.com/wireless/att.
Thank you for taking the time to write to us to request a review of your eligibility for discounts and hope that you continue to remain a loyal AT&T customer!

QUESTION:

Hello My Phone Co. buddies,
I need to run something by you & get your opinion.
I received a letter from AT&T saying that because I just had a birthday they were reducing some or one of my benefits.
Since you’re probably all younger than me you may not have received such shocking news.
I called the benefits dept. & found out the life insurance policy the co. provided for us gets reduced by 10% when we turn 66. Then 10% more each year after, until age 70. At age 70 they really sock it to you and cut the remainder in ½ !!!
Jeez there won’t be much left. I told the rep. I was pissed because I earned that benefit. Think of all the hours we worked without overtime & all the nights managers were on call with no compensation. This is the thanx we get.
I asked if there was anything I could do and guess what her answer was….NO.
Do you know if we have any options to fight this?

ANSWER:

The terms of each of the benefit plans offered by AT&T are spelled out in each Plan’s Summary Plan Description.  If I’ve learned anything in Benefits, I’ve learned that my SPDs are the “Bible” to understanding the plans that I’m enrolled in.  If I have a question regarding my coverage or a participant’s coverage, I always go to my SPD (and the Summaries of Material Modification that update the SPDs) to find out what the terms of the plan are.

Some of our life insurance plans do have a reduction schedule after an individual reaches a particular age.  In one of our plans that is applicable to certain retired managers and certain retired bargained employees in the west region, the amount of the basic life insurance is subject to an age reduction schedule that starts at age 66.  For those individuals, their original coverage amount of the basic life insurance is reduced by an additional 10% each year until they reach age 70.  At the age of 70, the basic life insurance amount is reduced to 50% of the original coverage amount.   Premiums for the basic life insurance coverage are paid by AT&T.  The basic life insurance amount is never reduced to less than $1,500 and no reduction is applicable if the coverage amount at the time of retirement is $1,500 or less.

In this same plan, supplementary life insurance can be continued until the age of 65, provided the individual was enrolled in supplementary life insurance at the time of retirement and continued to pay the required contributions.  Assuming the required contributions continued, the supplemental life insurance coverage ends on the last day of the month in which the retiree reaches the age of 65 and is not subject to age-based reductions.

There is more than one life insurance plan at AT&T, so I don’t know what the specific plan terms are that apply to this individual.  The terms quoted to her by the AT&T Benefits Center representative do not sound inconsistent with the terms of many of the retiree plans.  I’d recommend you refer her back to her Summary Plan Description to become familiar with the terms of her Plan.  If she did not keep her Summary Plan Description or has misplaced it, she can contact the AT&T Benefits Center (1-877-722-0020) and request that a copy be mailed to her.  She can also access the Summary Plan Descriptions on line at the AT&T Benefits Center Website which is accessible through access.att.com.  The AT&T Benefits Center has access to the terms of the Plans that apply to each enrolled individual, but retirees can build their confidence in the answers being provided or check the answers provided by viewing the terms of the plan for themselves.

Life insurance plans are generally designed to help families replace the primary breadwinners income in the event of a premature death.  As a result, they typically become much more expensive beyond certain ages (and are also less common).   I did a search on the web and found a couple of articles on life insurance that may be of interest:

http://money.cnn.com/magazines/moneymag/money101/lesson20/index5.htm

http://www.lifeinsurancerates.com/life-insurance-after-retirement.html