By GREGORY N. HEIRES

More than 3,200 municipal workers have signed up so far for a new early retirement incentive, helping the city trim its labor force and close budget gaps.

Under an agreement with municipal unions, the city pledged not to lay off any workers during the program's filing period, which runs through Oct. 8.

The deadline for city workers to file with the New York City Employees Retirement System is Sept. 24, or two weeks before Oct. 8, the last possible date for retiring. Workers must notify their employer of their intent to retire by Sept. 17, a week before the NYCERS deadline.

The enrollment period for Board of Education employees ended Aug. 31.

Throughout the summer, the DC 37 Pension Unit has been offering counseling sessions at DC 37 and at work sites for members who are considering retiring, and the Personal Services Unit has been holding pre-retirement seminars.

"The union has been very busy trying to help members reach a decision about whether they should take advantage of it," said DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts.

"The incentive is a good deal for a lot of people," said Dennis Deahn, pension advisor and director of field services for the DC 37 Health and Security Fund. "But we are urging members to study the details carefully to make sure they don't retire and find out later that their pension isn't enough."

The 2002 early retirement incentive is divided into two different programs: Part A is a traditional program modeled on past incentives. Participants must be at least 50 years old and have 10 years of service and two years of membership in a pension plan. Part A provides up to 36 months of extra credited service, but participants may be subject to a penalty of reduced pension payments based on their age at retirement, except for people in the Chapter 96 plan, who may qualify for a year of bonus credit.

Part B allows qualified members with 25 years of credited service in pension tiers 2 and 4 to retire as early as age 55 without the usual penalties for retiring before 62. Part B does not offer extra pension credits.

Counseling is available
The DC 37 Pension Unit has scheduled walk-in counseling sessions at DC 37 headquarters for members who are considering early retirement. About 500 members of Locals 983 and 1549 attended a special information session sponsored by their locals on Aug. 17.

Upcoming Pension Unit walk-in sessions at DC 37 will run from 4 to 8 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 27; Wednesday, Aug. 28; and Thursday, Aug. 29; and from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 4, and Thursday, Sept. 5. On Sept. 14, the Saturday before the Sept. 17 filing deadline, the Pension Unit will hold a 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. open-door session at 125 Barclay St.; bring pay stubs, W-2s and NYCERS statements.

The Personal Services Unit has scheduled a two-part early retirement seminar from 4 to 6 p.m. on Aug. 29 and Sept. 4 at the union. The sessions will cover health insurance, union benefits, financial and legal matters and personal adjustment to retirement. To register, call (212) 815-1250.

Before their retirement date, participants must complete a "Health Benefits Application" to ensure that they continue to receive health care coverage. Participants who will be eligible for Medicare at retirement should contact the Social Security Administration and file for Medicare. To remain in their current health plan, Medicare-eligible participants must get and file a special application from their health plan before they retire.

Participants should call the DC 37 Health and Security information line (212) 815-1234 to find out how to apply for union welfare benefits. New retirees are urged to join the DC 37 Retirees Association; just call (212) 815-1781.

The legislation creating the early retirement programs permits employers to decide whether to opt into the Part A program and to determine the enrollment period. At city and state agencies that fail to establish a starting date for Part B, the open period will begin automatically Jan. 1, 2003.

At the New York City Housing Authority, the open period for Part A will be Sept. 4 to Dec. 2. For Part B, the open period will be from Oct. 3 to Dec. 31.

As PEP went to press, the enrollment periods had not been announced at other employers, such as HHC, CUNY, OTB, TBTA, MTA NYC Transit and the Comptroller's Office.

The New York Public Library wasn't going to offer the incentive, but pressure from Locals 1930 and 374 convinced it to participate. The Brooklyn library will also participate. At press time, the Queens library had not announced whether it would participate.

For more information on the Early Retirement Incentive program, call (212) 815-1200.