Qualified retirement plans have a number of weird rules.  One of them is that sometimes one year doesn’t equal a year.  For instance, under the traditional hours of service crediting method, an employee can earn a year of vesting service in as little as five or six months.  If a new hire plays his cards right, he can get credit for two years of vesting service in a little less than 12 months.

Someone might hear this and say, “That’s dumb.  Can’t you make it so an employee has to work a full 12 months before getting a year of credited service?”  Why, yes, you can.  A plan can use the elapsed time method instead of the traditional hours of service method.  However, the old adage “Be careful what you wish for” applies.

The Pros and Cons of the Elapsed Time Method

The start of holiday season has everyone busy with special events, travels and precious time with family.

For your convenience, I've compiled links to our recently published posts from October and November directly below.  

What You Might Have Missed - October and November 2019

See our recap of November's key statistics and market commentary below. 

Noteworthy Numbers

The S&P 500 is positive for the year by 27.63%, on track for its best calendar year return since 2013.

The US added 128,000 non-farm payrolls in October, far surpassing the consensus estimate of 89,000 jobs.

The tech sector led the S&P 500 in November with a 5.38% return.

Investor Insights - December 2019