Mgmt Retiree Life Ins. will continue

[remberger]

Good News. Kirkland and Ellis have confirmed that Avaya plans to continue to pay Retiree Life insurance when emerges from bankruptcy.

See the e-mail below.

Bob Emberger

Nash, Patrick J. <patrick.nash@kirkland.com>

To:You
Cc:Sussberg, Josh;Yenamandra, Aparna;Bentley, Rachael Marie;Townsell, Andrew
Sun 2/26/2023 10:09 AM
Confirmed

Patrick J. Nash Jr.
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
300 N. LaSalle Street
Chicago IL 60654
(O) 312-862-2290
(M) 224-221-7237
(M) 773-343-3842

On Feb 26, 2023, at 8:24 AM, Robert Emberger <remberger@live.com> wrote:


From: Robert M. Emberger

CC: Joshua A. Sussberg, P.C.
Aparna Yenamandra, P.C.
Rachael M. Bentley, P.C.
Andrew Townsell, P.C.

RE: Disposition of Avaya Management Retiree Life Insurance under Avaya’s 2023 Bankruptcy

Dear Sir:

I am a management retiree from Avaya and I participated actively in the initial Avaya bankruptcy case. At that time, I received a partial settlement for my non-qualified pension and Avaya promised to continue paying for my life insurance.

I have read the plan for the 2023 bankruptcy and it is unclear to me whether Avaya is terminating the retiree life insurance under the proposed plan. My interpretation of the plan is that Management Retiree Life will not be impacted.

ARTICLE IV. MEANS FOR IMPLEMENTATION OF THEPLAN,
O. Employment Obligations.
Unless otherwise provided herein, and subject to Article V of the Plan, all employee wages, compensation, and benefit programs in place as of the Effective Date with the Debtors shall be assumed by the Reorganized Debtors and shall remain in place as of the Effective Date, and the Reorganized Debtors will continue to honor such agreements, arrangements, programs, and plans as of the Effective Date; provided that, it is agreed and understood that the consummation of the Restructuring Transactions and the Plan and any associated organization changes shall not constitute a “change in control” or “change of control” or other similar event under any such agreement, arrangement, program, plan, or policy. For the avoidance of doubt, pursuant to section 1129(a)(13) of the Bankruptcy Code, as of the Effective Date, all retiree benefits (as such term is defined in section 1114 of the Bankruptcy Code), if any, shall continue to be paid in accordance with applicable law. On the Effective Date, the Reorganized Debtors shall (a) assume all employment agreements, indemnification agreements, or other agreements entered into with current employees; provided that it is agreed to and understood that the consummation of the Restructuring Transactions and the Plan and any associated organization changes shall not constitute a “change in control” or “change of control” or other similar event under any such agreement, arrangement, program, plan, or policy; or (b) enter into new agreements with such employees on terms and conditions acceptable to the Reorganized Debtors and such employee.

Can you confirm that Management Retiree Life insurance will continue to be paid by Avaya once it emerges from bankruptcy. A query to KCC, LLC has gone unanswered.

Robert Emberger
(312) 636-7593



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[tpcannon]

That’s good news. Thank you for making this inquiry and posting it. I don’t see their response here. Can you share a printed response they provided you?

-Terry Cannon

[tfelix]

Does anyone know what happens if we do (or do not) "Opt Out" of the mailing we recently received about the new Avaya bankruptcy? What are we opting out of?

[wpageabc]

Thanks for posting the 'Good News' Bob...

[richcook]

I just received a W-2 from Alight Solutions BPS and was/am quite confused, as I was paying over $300 a month towards the Metlife group policy and had assumed (!) Avaya's contribution had stopped after I turned 70. I cancelled the policy a few months ago (I have enough savings that it wasn't worth the cost for the coverage provided) and received a $6,000 cash payout for the policy 'value'.

So is Avaya still paying towards some amount of life insurance, or should I expect to NOT receive a W-2 for 2024 since I cancelled? I'm VERY confused...

[dwhisenant]

Rich,
There were 2 options for ATT life insurance. 1. company provided at no cost to you for up to $XXX amount. 2. If you wanted additional coverage above what the company pays for (option 1) you could buy Supplemental or additional insurance from MetLife. So the insurance you cancelled was surely Supplemental that you have been paying for years, ATT never matched any of the cost of the Supplemental. You would not get a W2 for the supplemental because you paid for it, not Avaya. The W2 you have gotten in the past and the one I just got for 2023 is for the amount Avaya pays for your basic company insurance through a MetLife Group Policy.

Hope this helps, you should expect a W2.

Don

[jrevier]

There seems to be an awful lot of comment about getting W2 or a 1099 for the
Retiree. I've spoken to MetLife directly in the non universal life group. A 1099 or W2 is not needed if the insurance does not go above the 50K limit. If the life insurance was above 59k imputed income would need to be detailed in a 1099/W2? That's directly from MetLife so I'm not expecting one now as I did not get any other additional Life Insurance than what was given the retiree.

Jerry

[gmregister]

For Mr. richcook and anyone else interested, information about your Avaya Life Insurance can be found by logging into mybenefits.metlife.com. This includes your current life insurance amount plus any beneficiaries you have specified. Beneficiaries can also be added/changed here.

Metlife can also be reached if needed at 866-492-6983. Metlife took over administration of the life insurance policy in 2021.

As many know, after age 65, the amount of your life insurance decreases by 10% per year.  At age 70 it decreases to 50% of the initial amount. After that it does not decline further and stays at 50% until age 95 when it ends and goes to zero.

in case it helps anyone writing up info for their beneficiaries, in the Met Life package that I received 9/2021, it indicates the Group Policy Number as 102598-8-G, the Group Number as 234276, with the policy holder listed as Avaya Inc. Salaried Employees Post-Retirement Benefits Trust.

[If this info looks familiar it was also posted in the Health section due to a question there.]

Gerry McLoughlin