University no longer contributing to faculty and staff retirement plans

University no longer contributing to faculty and staff retirement plans

By Raven Yamamoto

[Update 9/6/2020: Clarification was added that the 9.5 percent match only applied to staff and faculty members who were contributing at least 5% of their salary on their own.]

As of last Tuesday, LMU will no longer contribute to faculty and staff retirement plans as a result of the University’s “ongoing financial challenges.”

In early August, staff and faculty received notice that the University would suspend its Defined Contribution Retirement Plan that previously matched up to 9.5 percent of staff and faculty annual salaries toward their retirement if they were contributing at least 5 percent on their own. Staff and faculty are still able to independently contribute to their retirement plans.

The move is one of the latest measures taken by the University to cut costs amid the pandemic. 

“This shared sacrifice is required to counter our shrinking revenues as we head into the fall semester,” wrote Rebecca Chandler, LMU’s Vice President of Human Resources. 

Chandler also explained in the memo that the University originally intended to reduce its employer match contributions, not eliminate them.

“As the pandemic in LA County worsened and public health guidance has further restricted our reopening plans, the university’s revenues from housing and other fees for the fall have been adversely impacted,” Chandler wrote.

According to the memo, the University will reconsider the discontinuation of employer matching in June of next year “as financial conditions and circumstances permit.”