Basic life insurance is available on an optional contributory basis.  This coverage pays benefits to your beneficiary in the event of your death from any cause while you are insured.

Benefit Amounts

During Active Service – Before Age 65
If you are actively working at the Company and are under age 65, your basic life insurance amount is equal to two times your annual Pay (rounded to the next higher $1,000 if your annual Pay is not an even multiple of $1,000).

“Pay” is defined in the Glossary.

When your Pay increases enough to put you in a new insurance bracket, your insurance amount will automatically increase.  If your Pay decreases, your insurance amount will not change unless the decrease is enough to put you in a new bracket and you request in writing to be insured for the lower amount.  There is one important exception to this “no change” rule.  If the decrease is part of a general reduction in Pay or hours affecting all employees in your plant, department or other identifiable group, your insurance will be reduced if your new Pay rate puts you in a lower insurance bracket.
Any change will be effective immediately.  If you are on leave of absence, long-term disability, or strike at that time, the increase or reduction in insurance will take place upon your return to work.

During Active Service – At Age 65 and After
If you continue working after you reach age 65, your basic life insurance coverage in effect at age 65 will be reduced 10% a year until it reaches 50% of the amount in effect on your 65th birthday.  Any Pay increases you receive after age 65 will not increase your insurance coverage.
The initial 10% reduction will become effective on the first day of the month of your 65th birthday.  Subsequent reductions will become effective on the anniversary of that date each year.
Your contributions for basic life insurance will be reduced when your insurance coverage is reduced.
The balance between your reduced amount and the original amount of coverage can be converted to an individual policy.  Refer to “Conversion Privileges” at the end of this section for more information.

During Disability
If you become Totally Disabled (as defined in the Glossary) during active service and before age 63, your basic life insurance coverage will continue at the level in effect at the time your disability began for as long as you remain Totally Disabled or until you reach age 65, whichever is earlier.  After you have been continuously disabled for 13 weeks, this coverage will continue providing you pay any required cost.  For hourly employees, coverage continues at no cost.  If your Total Disability begins after your 63rd birthday, however, your insurance will continue for two years, but not beyond age 70. 

At age 65, or at the expiration of the two-year period if later, you may be eligible to continue a portion of your insurance amount, as described previously.

About Your Basic Life Insurance Amount
If your annual Pay is not an even multiple of $1,000, it is rounded up for purposes of determining your basic life insurance amount.  This rounding of your Pay means that insurance amounts are actually provided in $2,000 steps as shown by the examples in the following chart.
If your annual Pay is:	Your basic life insurance amount is:
$24,000.01 to $25,000	$50,000
$25,000.01 to $26,000	$52,000
$26,000.01 to $27,000	$54,000
$27,000.01 to $28,000	$56,000
$28,000.01 to $29,000	$58,000
$29,000.01 to $30,000	$60,000
$30,000.01 to $31,000	$62,000
$31,000.01 to $32,000	$64,000
$32,000.01 to $33,000	$66,000
$33,000.01 to $34,000	$68,000
etc.  in steps of $1,000	etc.  in steps of $2,000

During Retirement – At Age 65 and After
If you retire at age 65 or later, a reduced amount of basic life insurance coverage (described below) will continue for the rest of your life, provided you had basic life insurance coverage for at least one year immediately preceding retirement.  This reduced coverage is currently provided at no cost to you.

If you had basic life insurance coverage for at least one year but less than five years immediately preceding your retirement, your reduced insurance will be $625.

If you had basic life insurance coverage for at least five years immediately preceding your retirement, the amount of your reduced insurance will be the greater of:

• 1% of your basic life insurance amount just before retirement times your years of service (including any fraction of a year), plus $500, with a minimum of $2,500 or 25% of your basic life insurance just before retirement, up to a maximum of $10,000
  or
  
• 20% of your basic life insurance just before retirement.

If you continue working after age 65, the amount of your reduced life insurance will be calculated using the amount of your basic life insurance in force at age 65.

During Retirement – Before Age 65
If you retire before age 65, are eligible for an immediate pension benefit, and had basic life insurance coverage for at least one year immediately preceding retirement, you can:

• continue your full basic life insurance amount until age 65 by continuing to make your regular premium payments
  or
  
• take the reduced basic life insurance amount (as described under “During Retirement – At Age 65 and After”) immediately at no cost to you.