Rehiring employee after plan termination

Employer is winding down, and let go off an employee prior to termination of the plan.  Employer wants to re-hire the former employee on a P/T or TEMP basis.  The former e/e is a pension plan participant, is now a retiree and began monthly pension payments in July. If rehired and plan was in effect, benefit would be suspended.  Can the employer re-hire this ex-employee without impacting his monthly pension payments, now that the plan is terminated?

If working <40 hours a month the SoB would not apply anyway. The definitive answer lies in the group annuity contract placed with the insurer that is now providing the monthly annuity benefits. I do not know if suspension of benefits provisions must be included in those contracts, but would think most/all insurers might want those administrative complexities taken out.

If the plan termination process has not yet progressed to that stage you are still bound to follow the plan document.

I ranted about this issue a few years ago.  My opinion is unchanged.  Especially when a plan is frozen, any "suspension on rehire" provision is contrary to the needs of the plan sponsor and causes no harm to the plan itself.