Some former employees of New York City-based St. Clare's Hospital said they received letters last month indicating they will no longer receive their pension, while others will see cuts to the amount they are supposed to receive, according to News 10.
Here are three things to know:
1. Former hospital employees told News 10 they received letters about their pensions in October. Some employees were told they would receive a partial amount, while hundreds of others discovered they would not be receiving anything.
"It's very unsettling because I don't want to have those kind of hurtful feelings and I trusted in the people there to take care of us," one employee told the publication.
2. Roughly 1,129 former employees have started a petition for support from members of the community. The petition states the employees' pension plan was abruptly terminated Nov. 1 with less than three weeks of advance notice. The petition had over 2,700 signatures as of Nov. 14.
3. The St. Clare's Corp. board of directors released a statement to News 10 about the situation, stating they are "very sympathetic to the difficulties this situation has created for the participants of the St. Clare's plan."
"We have great admiration for the skill and compassion with which St. Clare's employees delivered healthcare services to many of the most vulnerable people in the Schenectady community over many years. There simply are not enough assets in the plan to provide the benefits to all current and future participants. Given these circumstances, St. Clare's Corporation faced a very difficult choice. If the pension plan were continued without changes, actuarial estimates projected that the plan would run out of money within about six to 10 years, leaving all participants, including those already retired and receiving monthly pension checks, with no further payments. By terminating the plan now, approximately 443 current beneficiaries will be assured of receiving payments for the rest of their lives, at about 70 percent of the expected level."
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