Page 61 - October 2018 FOP Magazine

After Janus: Know all your FOP Lodge 7 union benefits
By now you know all about the Janus ruling and how it impacts public sector employees and unions. Setting aside the intent of the lawsuit and its politics, what should be most important to you are the benefits of your FOP Lodge 7 membership. The benefits most important to you vary with your status on the job
or in retirement. Let’s take a look at the overall
value of your union.
Collective bargaining and legal representa-
tion
• • • •
Disability insurance protection
Life and income replacement insurance Auto, property and casualty insurance Pet insurance
•
• Firearm insurance Discount prescriptions
• 24/7 access to telemedicine
• Major accidents, personal injury, malpractice, nursing home abuse
• Living trusts, wills, powers of attorney, probate
TOM TUOHY
Imagine allowing the City to determine, unchecked,
your salary, rights and City policies. Now imagine violat-
ing any of those policies and having no legal representation.
You know you must be represented. It can be tempting to think the grass is greener somewhere else because you wanted a better contract or hoped for a better result with your grievance. However, you will not find union representatives with a better understanding of your job or labor lawyers with more experience with the police than you have in the FOP.
Even if it is possible to be working in this current environment without a CR or on the wrong end of a lawsuit, the legal insurance is well worth it. You might also have never been in an auto acci- dent. Would you drive without insurance, aside from the fact that it’s against the law? Of course not. In the same way, your contract representation and legal defense plan are essential on-the-job in- surance policies.
FOP Benefits Plan
Whether you are still working or retired, as a member of Lodge 7 you and your family members have access to dozens of other ben- efits. From recruit to retiree, having awareness and access to the right benefit, at the right time, can make all the difference.
Every day we hear about how well the economy is doing. Here is a reality we cannot escape: middle-class life is now 30 percent more expensive than it was 20 years ago. According to Pew Research, the average paycheck today does not have the same purchasing power it did 40 years ago. If you think your paycheck or pension isn’t going as far as it used to, you are correct.
I am sure you have heard or read about the popular living trust benefit that I provide to members at a 50 percent fee reduction, and we may have met at the CPD Retirement Seminar sometime in the last 30 years. I have represented thousands of police and family members in my career and will continue to do so.
However, this vital service is only one of the dozens of essential benefits in your FOP Benefits Plan. A members website (www.fop- benefitsplan.com) provides you with a complete detailed list of all your benefits, regular updates and deals. You can also call 866-729- 5454 or email admin@cbaplan.com for information and assistance.
In addition to a Friends of FOP section offering a variety of dis- counts, you have access to regularly featured retail product dis- counts and professionals, services and products that serve your essential needs, such as:
• Financial planning, safe money planning, retirement planning, healthcare savings plans
• Investment management
• Deferred comp and 401k rollover solutions
• College savings plans
• Student loan refinancing
• Medicaid planning
• Asset protection
• Health insurance solutions
• Short-term care plans
• Long-term care strategies
• Critical illness/cancer plans
• Hospital confinement plan
neys
• Entertainment, travel, hotels, sporting events, flowers • Internet security and identity theft protection
You should know that you’ve got a guy when you need one. With a union like the FOP and your Lodge 7, your protection is broad and you have what you need when you need it. Most importantly, you and your family have access to benefits that can help you get ahead and stay ahead, no matter what happens on or off the job and throughout your retirement. All these benefits and more are the real value of your union.
Registration in the Benefits Plan for FOP members and family is free. d
Tom Tuohy is the founder of Tuohy Law Offices and the FOP Benefits Plan. He has been a police lawyer for 34 years. His father was a CPD detective, and his grandfather was CPD Chief of Major Investiga- tions. You can reach Tom at 312-559-8400.
FOP
Benefits Plan • Student tutoring, college guidance and ACT test prep
• Real estate brokers, mortgage, inspection, survey, attor-
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ OCTOBER 2018 61