If you leave PERS-covered employment without being vested
Status of a PERS member who has been an active member of the system in each of five calendar years. and do not return to PERS-covered employment within five years, you lose your Tier One or Tier Two membership. Once you lose your membership, you should contact PERS to apply for a withdrawal, as your account will stop accruing earnings. Loss-of-Membership accounts are not eligible for restoration or purchase at retirement.
You do not incur a loss of membership if (1) you are within five years of your earliest retirement age and you terminate employment with all PERS-covered employers or (2) you are an inactive member at the time you reach your earliest service retirement age. You will not, however, be vested. If you are a school district employee, you do not lose your membership if you (1) are inactive for five school years but are re-employed by a school district in a qualifying position at the beginning of the sixth year or (2) reach your earliest service retirement age before the beginning of the sixth year.
Should you subsequently return to a qualifying position A qualifying position is one in which an employee will perform 600 or more hours of service in a calendar year in one or more jobs with one or more participating public employers., you will re-establish membership in the OPSRP Pension Program after serving another six-month waiting period.