LAGERS BLOGGERS

Jeff Pabst, CRC

Are you responsible for onboarding new employees, providing employees with benefit information and/or helping employees through the retirement process? As someone who is responsible for administering your political subdivision’s LAGERS benefit, you likely play a role with one or all of those essential processes. The good news, LAGERS is here to help!

LAGERS provides you with a wide variety of resources for the diverse range of employees you may be helping. Below is a list of the many educational resources available for you and the employees.

Digital & Online Resources

• myLAGERS: This is a great resource for employees to see their personalized information. It provides online access to their member account where they can change personal information, update beneficiaries, and work through their benefit information. Access myLAGERS today!
  
• LAGERS website: The majority of questions a member may have about their benefit can be answered on LAGERS’ website. The newly redesigned site offers mobile first design, enhanced search and an updated events calendar where registration for all of our in-person and virtual events can be found.
• Social Media & Blogs: LAGERS is active on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIN. A wide variety of content is shared to meet the diverse audiences of each platform. As you know because you are reading the Administrator blog, LAGERS also has two blogs where new information is shared regularly: blog.molagers.org and blog.molagers.org/administrator. Subscribe to one or both if you would like to receive an email notification when there are new posts made to the blog(s).
  
• Email Communication: Members who receive a wide variety of emails including system updates, monthly event invitations, benefit updates, and in the near future, custom career stage emails.

Virtual & In-Person Events

• On-Site Presentations: LAGERS offers a wide variety of on-site presentations including LAGERS Lunch Breaks for newer employees, custom pre-retirement seminars for those nearing retirement, governing body meetings and benefits fairs. Contact us if you would like to schedule an on-site meeting in 2021!
• Pre-Retirement Seminars: These seminars are designed for those who are within 5 years of retirement. The format, content, and information received at a pre-retirement seminar will help members better understand the choices they need to make and what to expect once they are drawing a benefit. These sessions are held both regionally in-person and virtually. Whether the member attends a virtual seminar or in-person, they will receive a comprehensive seminar booklet and a benefit estimate based on the projected retirement date provided by the member. Visit our website to see the upcoming in-person and virtual pre-retirement seminars.
• Retiree Link Meetings: These meetings are provided for retirees to give them system updates from LAGERS leadership, an opportunity to connect with LAGERS staff and other retirees in their region and hear an education session relevant to our retired members. These will be scheduled in late summer of 2021.
• Employer Focused Meetings: LAGERS hosts Employer Rate Meetings and Human Resource Meetings regionally every year. The Employer Rate Meetings includes updates from LAGERS leadership about funding, contribution rates, and the inner workings of the system’s financials. The Human Resource Meetings are designed for those who are involved with recruitment and retention efforts, benefit education and communication, and other human resources tasks. Both meetings are designed to better equip you for administering and communicating your LAGERS benefit.

Print Resources

• Educational Publications: LAGERS provides a wide variety of printed publications for member education.
  • Custom Employee Handout: LAGERS can provide you with a printable custom employee handout with your subdivision’s specific benefit elections.
  • Member Handbook: This is a comprehensive handbook that covers every aspect of the LAGERS system. For this booklet to be fully useful, employees must know the subdivision’s benefit elections.
  • Break Room Posters: These provide a general high-level explanation of how LAGERS benefits grow. They are great for your break room and other public areas. Contact us to request one.
• Member Annual Statements: Annual Statements are mailed in late March and provide the members with a snapshot of their benefit today and in the future. This is a VERY important document to help employees better understand their benefit because it provides custom information about their personal benefit.

Learning Opportunities for YOU!

• Certified LAGERS Adminsitrator (CLA): The CLA provides you with a well-rounded understanding of the inner working of your LAGERS system. By completing and maintaining a CLA, you will have the confidence to educate your employees about LAGERS benefits and administer your LAGERS benefit for your subdivision. This certification is self-paced and will you require you to attend at least one of the previously mentioned Employer Focused Meetings.

There are number of resources available to you. Of course you or your employees can always contact the LAGERS office with any question you may have.