Retiree Services and Call Center

Director: Michael E. Williams,
617-679-6877, ext. 6880

Consisting of a Call Center as well as several staff members who specialize in retiree services, this is known as our ‘rapid response’ unit.

We are especially proud of our Call Center, which is staffed almost entirely by retired MTRS members—who better to advise you than a former colleague who has gone through the process and has the benefit of retirement experience? Our Call Center representatives’ goal is to provide all members with prompt, accurate answers to questions regarding your retirement benefits and services, and we will gladly send you any forms or informational materials you may need.

The Retiree Service team performs a variety of services for benefit recipients. We:

• maintain retiree account information, such as address, tax, and direct deposit data;
• provide verification of pension benefits upon request from our retirees, for example, when this documentation is needed for mortgage applications, loans or housing benefits;
• administer health insurance deductions, as instructed by plan administrators (cities, towns or the Group Insurance Commission);
• prepare and distribute 1099-R tax forms annually, as well as, on an every-other-year basis, Benefit Verification Forms;
• process retiree-survivor benefits, as applicable, including establishing benefit payments to beneficiaries and adjusting retiree benefits in the event that the designated beneficiary predeceases the retiree (for Option C retirees only); and,
• manage the identification, publication and disbursement of unclaimed funds.

Our Call Center and Retiree Services team is committed to providing the best service to all members at all times, and to honoring our agency’s mission: ensuring that members of the Massachusetts Teachers’ Retirement System achieve and maintain a successful and secure retirement through responsible benefits administration, financial integrity and the provision of outstanding services.