Employer Digest

Friday, March 8, 2024

Welcome to Employer Digest, your monthly source for IMRF news and

information to help you stay connected with IMRF.

New Employer Access System Now Available

Please register for your New Employer Access account, if you have not done so already. Your organization's Authorized Agent should have received an email with a link to register for your New Employer Access account. The email came from an address ending in @imrf.org.

The link is valid for 48 hours after you receive it, so be sure to register within that time.

If your organization's Authorized Agent has not received an email with a registration link by the end of the day today, please call Employer Services next week at 1-800-728-7971. Thank you for your patience as we work through the extraordinary volume of calls and Secure Messages we are receiving during this transition.

Important Reminder: Wage Reports are now due by the 20th of each month, not the 10th as they were previously.

Get Quick Answers to Your Questions

Many answers can be found by attending one of the Open Forums described in the next article below, or in the new Employer Access Learning Center. How-to videos and pdf instructions are available in the Employer Access Learning Center for the following topics:

How To Set Up Your Team in the New System

Once you have activated your New Employer Access account, please go to this webpage and scroll down to the Add a team member training topic for instructions on how to set up your team in the new system.

Tip: If you are an Authorized Agent who has registered and is logged into your new Employer Access account, but you are unable to see your members, you may be able to see your members after creating a user role for another team member. This is just a temporary work around. This issue is currently being fixed.

How To Set Up Your Pre-Authorized Debit Account

Once you have activated your New Employer Access account and set up your team, please go to this webpage and click on the Set Up Payment Account pdf for instructions on setting up your Pre-Authorized Debit Account. For this process, you may need IMRF's company ID (2000065862) and associated account number (65862).

Expect Processing Delays and Longer Hold Times

IMRF anticipates temporary delays in customer service processing times, which is common during technology transitions of this magnitude. Our staff are advising IMRF members that it will temporarily take up to eight weeks to process applications. Please share this information with any employee who plans on applying for benefits.

We also anticipate longer hold times in the contact center during this transition and recommend using Secure Message in Employer Access whenever possible, to ask questions or submit information. To send a Secure Message in New Employer Access, click the Message Center (envelope) Icon in the tool bar on the left side of the Employer Access home screen and then click on Secure Messages.

We apologize for the inconvenience, and we appreciate your patience as IMRF converts to the new system.

Get Assistance at Our Open Forums and Individual Employer Appointments

To support IMRF employers during the transition to new Employer Access, we are offering two ways for you to get answers and receive live assistance.

Open Forums

Open Forums are being offered throughout March for you to drop in to ask questions you may have about your new Employer Access account.

While the forum is open for 90 minutes, you can come and go as you please. The Open Forums are provided using GoTo Webinar, and the links for the Open Forums are available here on the IMRF website.

Individual Appointments

Starting next week, we will also offer 30-minute Employer Appointments for individualized questions about your account related to submitting your monthly wage report data collection.

You can sign up for the 30-minute Employer Appointments through your new Employer Access account. After you login, click on the question mark in the toolbar on the left side of the screen and choose Workshops to register for the individual appointments.

February Board Meeting Highlights

On Friday, February 23, 2024, the IMRF Board of Trustees:

Approved the 2024 IMRF funding policy
Approved the 2025 death and disability rate
Reviewed the key accomplishments made in 2023 related to the 2023-2025 Strategic Plan
Approved the participation of new employers: the City of Gillespie and the McHenry County Regional Office of Education

Additional information

You can read the full report in the February 2024 Board Meeting Highlights. See the 2024 Board schedule here.

The next Board meeting will be held Friday, April 12, at 9 AM.

Authorized Agent Webinars to Return in May

Authorized Agent webinars will not be available in March and April, as we transition to the new Employer Access system. The webinars will resume in May.

These online webinars are for Authorized Agents to learn about IMRF procedures and how to administer IMRF benefits.

Important New Legislative Requirement

Effective January 1, 2024, Illinois pension law requires all new IMRF Authorized Agents to complete an IMRF-provided training course within three months of appointment.

Visit IMRF's website

Employer Access

Employer Digest Archive

You are receiving this email because you have been identified as an Employer Contact of IMRF. As such, you cannot opt out of receiving this email. To update your Employer Contact information, log in to your Employer Access account.

If someone at your employer would like to receive Employer Digest and does not have an Employer Access account, you can log in to your Employer Access account and add them as a "News Subscriber," or they may sign up here.

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Oak Brook, IL 60523-2337 (Main Office)

3000 Professional Dr., Ste. 101, Springfield, IL 62703

Member-only Phone: 1-800-ASK-IMRF (275-4673)

Employer-only Phone: 1-800-728-7971

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