Postal Employees
Retirement planning for postal employees
Postal careers are long days and late hours. Your review fits your schedule, with evening times available.
“I spent years walking into the back of post offices. I know your world.”
Your pension and TSP as a postal employee
Most career postal employees are covered by FERS, the same retirement system as most federal workers: a pension, Social Security, and the Thrift Savings Plan. Some long-serving employees are under CSRS instead.
Your pension depends mainly on your years of service and your highest average pay. Your TSP depends on what you and the Postal Service put in over the years, and on how it has grown.
Questions worth answering
- What will your pension be, in dollars, on the date you want to go?
- What could your TSP provide each month once the paychecks stop?
- If you retire before Social Security, how will you cover the years in between?
Postal health benefits in retirement (PSHB)
Since January 2025, postal employees and postal retirees have had their own health program, the Postal Service Health Benefits Program, or PSHB. It took the place of FEHB for the postal community.
PSHB has its own rules, including rules about Medicare that depend on your age and when you retire. This is general information, not advice about which plan to choose.
Questions worth answering
- Will you be able to keep PSHB coverage when you retire?
- How will PSHB and Medicare work together for you and your spouse?
- What happens to your spouse's coverage if you die first?
Planning around craft, schedule, and years of service
City carrier, rural carrier, clerk, mail handler, or supervisor: every path through the Postal Service brings its own pay, its own hours, and its own history. Your plan should start from yours.
Questions worth answering
- Did you start as a non-career employee, such as a PSE, CCA, RCA, or MHA? It is worth checking how that time counts.
- Did you serve in the military? Buying back that time can change your pension.
- Do you count on overtime today, and does your plan account for losing it when you retire?
- Would working a few more months, or leaving sooner, make a real difference?
What postal employees ask Mary most
- Is the review really free?
Yes, always. There is never a charge to sit with Mary, no matter how many appointments.
- Are you part of OPM, USPS, or the government?
No. Elite Federal Partners is an independent firm, and its agents are Certified Federal Retirement Consultants (FRC) through FFEBA.
- Do I have enough to retire?
A one on one consultation shows your exact numbers and helps you avoid pitfalls on the way to a rock solid retirement.
- How do I protect my TSP from a market crash?
Through proper education and strategic advice on a one on one call with Mary.
One hour. Your whole retirement picture. Free.
Evening times are available for postal schedules.
Free. No cost, no pressure, never billed.