What You Need To Know About The 401(a) Retirement Plan The 401(a) Retirement Plan is a multiple employer, defined contribution, money purchase pension plan and is also a church plan. This means that your benefits are defined by the amount contributed to your accounts in the Retirement Plan during your Y career, plus the interest credited to these accounts. On this page, you will learn about your eligibility to participate in the Retirement Plan and how contributions to the Plan work. You can also read our Summary Plan Description Booklet for more information. Eligibility and Vesting Your Y will enroll you in the Retirement Plan once you meet certain age and service requirements. Depending on your YMCA, your eligibility and vesting requirements for the Retirement Plan are: TWO-YEAR ELIGIBILITY ONE-YEAR ELIGIBILITY AGE You must be at least 21 years of age. You must be at least 21 years of age. SERVICE You must complete 1,000 hours of service in each of any two (2) 12-month periods beginning with your date of hire or anniversary date. The two periods do not have to be consecutive. You must complete 1,000 hours of service in one (1) 12-month period beginning with your date of hire or anniversary date. VESTING You are immediately vested in contributions and interest credited upon enrollment. You must complete 36 months of employment at a participating Y to become vested in contributions and interest credited to the YMCA Account within the 401(a) Retirement Plan. Any employee contributions and interest credited to the Personal Account are immediately vested, regardless of length of employment. For more information on Enrollment and Eligibility, click here. We also encourage you to speak with your Y’s Human Resources department or Benefits Administrator to understand which eligibility and vesting requirements apply to you. Plan Contributions Contributions to the Retirement Plan are based on your salary. Your Y chooses a total contribution rate of 12%, 11%, 10%, 9%, or 8%. Within that contribution rate, your Y also determines whether they will require you to participate in making contributions to your savings in the Plan. How Contributions Work Suppose your Y has chosen a 12% contribution rate and your paycheck is $2,500. If your Y makes the entire contribution (the full 12%), $300 will be sent to your YMCA Account after every payroll. If instead your Y has chosen to pay 7% and requires you to pay 5%, your Y will send $175 to your YMCA Account and $125 will be deducted from your paycheck after tax withholding and sent to your Personal Account. Contribution Rate = 12% Your Paycheck = $2,500 When Your Y Pays All When You Pay Some YMCA Account Contribution $300 $175 Personal Account Contribution $0 $125 Total Contribution Each Payroll $300 $300 Taxes Contributions to your YMCA Account and the interest credited to that account are not taxed until you take your retirement savings out in the form of an annuity or a withdrawal. Contributions you make to the Personal Account are made after-tax, which means you will be taxed by the federal government when it’s deducted from your paycheck. Then, when you’re ready to annuitize or withdraw your savings from your Personal Account, only the interest credited to those contributions is subject to federal tax at that time. State and local taxes vary.