Reporting Instruction Manual
Understanding membership

Membership in the Michigan Public School Employees' Retirement System

Michigan Public Schools Employees' Retirement System workers must be reported to the Michigan Office of Retirement Services (ORS). Workers must meet certain age and work rules to get retirement benefits. The rules depend on the worker's retirement plan.

A reporting unit must report two types of workers every pay period:

• Active workers in the retirement system.
• Retirees who return to work.

Michigan law says a member is any public school employee who isn’t specifically excluded. This includes temporary workers like some substitute teachers, crossing guards, and independent contractors.

Active, deferred, and inactive workers

A worker on an approved leave stays a member for two years. After two years without earning credit, their status changes.

• Active workers are currently working. They’re earning credit toward their retirement.
• Deferred members have stopped working. However, they can still get a benefit later. They’re vested, which means they have enough years of service to receive a benefit. If they return to work at any reporting unit, they become active again.
• Inactive members have stopped working. They didn’t work enough hours to receive a retirement benefit. If they return to work at any reporting unit, they become active again.

Workers excluded from membership

Some workers are never members. This includes people in specific youth training programs. It also includes board members who don’t have other jobs at the school. New workers at the seven universities that are part of the retirement system aren’t members unless they worked there before 1996.