Checklist Item #19 Application for Approval of a Suspension of 

Benefits Under MPRA

Iron Workers Local 17 Pension Fund EIN: 51-0161467

Plan No.: 001

Does the application include 

the plan information 

required by section 5.02.

See Section 5.02

The application on behalf of the Iron Workers 

Local 17 Pension Fund includes a detailed yearby year analysis of the annual changes from 1998 

through 2015 along with the series of steps taken 

by the Board of Trustees to avoid the impending 

insolvency in 2025 is included as Checklist Item 

#18. Additional historical information, classified 

as Plan Factors, which were taken into account 

are as follows:

Historical Summary of Contribution Levels 

1999 – Present

Effective Date of 

Change

Contribution 

Rate

October 1, 1999 $4.00

August 1, 2000 $4.35

August 1, 2001 $4.75

August 1, 2002 $5.10

August 1, 2003 $7.25

August 1, 2004 $7.75

August 1, 2005 $8.25

August 1, 2006 $9.00

August 1, 2008 $9.50

May 1, 2013 $10.00

Historical Summary of Benefit Accrual Levels

1998 – Present

Date of Work in 

Covered 

Employment

Benefit Credit 

Rate

May 1, 1997 to 

April 30, 1998

$75.00

May 1, 1998 to 

April 30, 2000

$85.50

May 1, 2000 to 

April 30, 2001

$90.00

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May 1, 2001 to 

November 1, 2004

$100.00

November 1, 2004 

and after

$50.00

Historical Summary of Plan Changes to 

Adjustable Benefits Under the Rehabilitation 

Plan adopted effective May 1, 2009: 

• All early retirement subsidies, except for 

the 30-Year and Out Service Pension for 

participants who reach age 62, were 

eliminated. 

• The disability pension benefit was 

eliminated for participants who did not 

receive a Social Security Disability Award. 

• The Return of Contribution Death Benefit, 

which was previously suspended, was 

eliminated.

• The Lump Sum Payment Option, which 

was previously suspended, was 

eliminated.

• The Sixty Payment Guarantee Option was 

eliminated.

• The Hours Bank Restoration Credit which 

was effective May 1, 2006 was eliminated.

As of May 1, 2009, all adjustable benefits were 

eliminated with the exception of the subsidy to 

participants who earned 30 years of Vesting 

Service who retire between age 62 and 65 and 

those participants that were determined by Social 

Security to be totally and permanently disabled. 

Accordingly, no additional adjustable benefit 

changes have been made since 2009.

As part of the updated Rehabilitation Plan in 

2011, the Board of Trustees struggled with 

elimination of any further adjustable benefits and 

determined to leave only the small remaining 

subsidy for the long time (30+ year) participants 

who work until age 62. At that time, they 

eliminated the disability pension under the 

Default Schedule. However, the bargaining 

parties elected to add a $0.50 per hour 

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contribution to the Pension Fund to retain the 

subsidy for disability pensioners.

Prior Benefit Suspensions Under MPRA 

The Board of Trustees have not applied for or 

received approval for any prior benefit 

suspensions under Internal Revenue Code 

Section 432(e)(9).

Board of Trustees’ Efforts to Maintain or 

Attract New Employers

Since 2007 when the excise tax was assessed for 

the 2003 funding deficiency, the Board of 

Trustees has sent representative to industry 

meetings to keep the contributing employers 

informed of the various actions that Trustees 

were undertaking to try to improve the solvency 

of the Pension Fund as detailed in Checklist Item 

#18. The retention of the Groom Law Group to 

negotiate the termination of the Pension Fund 

under a managed mass withdrawal was the result 

of employers’ requests. The Iron Workers Local 

Union No. 17 has a strong core group of area 

employers that are hopeful that the current 

Suspension Plan will help to stabilize the Pension 

Fund and ultimately eliminate the withdrawal 

liability and excise tax obligations which are 

currently adversely impacting their long term 

financial solvency. However, recent efforts by the 

International Iron Workers Union to provide more 

favorable agreements to large out of area 

contractors has undermined some of the support 

the local employers have shown for the recovery 

efforts. 

Impact of Solvency on Plan Subsidies and 

Ancillary Benefits

The Board of Trustees eliminated almost all early 

retirement subsidies and only provides a 50% 

survivorship annuity benefit upon death to 

surviving spouses and beneficiaries for 

unmarried participants under its initial 

Rehabilitation Plan effective May 1, 2009 as 

explained above. There are no other ancillary 

benefits provided to the participants and 

beneficiaries. 

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Compensation Levels Relative to the Industry

In 2008 when the Iron Workers Local 17 Pension 

Fund contribution rate was raised to $9.50 per 

hour it was at least double if not 3x higher than all 

other pension fund contributions in Northeast 

Ohio. Since that time, the rate changes to $10.00 

per hour effective May 1, 2013. This equates to 

a contribution required of $19,000 for a $50.00 

Benefit Credit each year the active participant

works as an Iron Worker. During the process of 

evaluating the Suspension Plan, the Board of 

Trustees was able to obtain rates for some other 

area pension funds through the State of Ohio 

Prevailing Wage reports. These rates still 

support the fact that the $10.00 per hour 

contribution rate is higher than most of the area 

trades including the Carpenter/Millwrights, 

Glaziers and Operating Engineers which have 

overlapping jurisdictional claims. This disparity 

causes contributing employers to seek to use 

other trades instead of the Iron Workers Local 17 

members causing grievances and other disputes. 

Union/Craft Year Rate

Operating 

Engineers

2015 $6.00

Plumbers 219 

(Summit 

County)

2014 $10.55

Laborers 860 2015 $3.00

Sheet Metal 

Workers Local 

33

2015 $11.48

Truck Drivers –

Building 

Heavy/Highway 

Drivers

2015 $6.70

Cement Masons 

132

2015 $6.00

Asbestos 

Workers

2015 $7.10

Boilermakers 2009 $6.46

Bricklayers 

Local 7 (Summit 

County)

2014 $7.46

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Carpenter 

Millwrights

2014 $5.99

Electricians 306 

(Summit 

County)

2015 $1.01-1.05

Elevator Local 

45

2012 $6.96

Glaziers Local 

181 (Cuyahoga 

County)

2013 $7.41

Iron Workers 

550 

(neighboring 

Pension Fund)

2015 $8.17

Sprinkler Fitters 

Local 669

2015 $5.75

Competitive Factors Facing Contributing 

Employers

During 2002-2006, the only option for the Board 

of Trustees to improve the funding of the Pension 

Fund was to reduce benefits on a prospective 

basis and increase hourly contributions. 

Accordingly, during these years future benefits 

were dramatically reduced and the contribution 

rate was increased at such a rate as to make it 

the highest in the Northeast Ohio area. The 

Board of Trustees designed the initial 

Rehabilitation Plan in 2008 to bring the liabilities 

for the pension benefits into line with the $9.50 

per hour contribution rate at the time in order to 

avoid raising the contribution rate and making the 

contributing employers even less competitive. At 

this time, the Iron Workers Local 17 Pension 

Fund contribution rate is closer to other building 

trade rates, so the employers that survived those 

initial years are not placed in such a competitive

disadvantage. 

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