cost of state pensions: $1 trillion

[Mursilis]

As olds just pointed out, we often make less than the private world counterpart.

It really depends on the field, and the level of gov't. At the federal level, the pay can lag behind the private sector by a good bit, especially in fields like mine (law). However, our hours are much closer to 40/week vs. the 60-80 hour weeks big firm lawyers put in. Plus, there's good job security and other perks, so it's a give and take of benefits, just like most jobs.

 

[Hacp]

Heard of the guy making 222,222 dollars in pensions at age 44? How bout the guy with a 100,000 pension at age 30? They do exist. All because of unions. What would be a reasonable pension? 5k a year tops. Perhaps 5.1k if the company were feeling generous.

 

[Hacp]

As olds just pointed out, we often make less than the private world counterpart.

Make less than a private world counterpart? Are you serious? Take parochial schools. Teachers in those schools make way less than teachers in the public system. Sanitation workers, police officers, firefighters, many of whom don't have a college education get paid tons! I heard sanitation workers start at 40k and max salary is 65-70k. ABSURD!

 

[Vette73]

It really depends on the field, and the level of gov't. At the federal level, the pay can lag behind the private sector by a good bit, especially in fields like mine (law). However, our hours are much closer to 40/week vs. the 60-80 hour weeks big firm lawyers put in. Plus, there's good job security and other perks, so it's a give and take of benefits, just like most jobs.

Yea we sometimes have a easier time getting older lawyers as they don;t want the 80hr work week anymore and will take a "pay cut" to be able to see their kids/family. While new out of college lawyers only see the $$$ and go for the money without thinking "salary/hours =..."

 

[Vette73]

Heard of the guy making 222,222 dollars in pensions at age 44? How bout the guy with a 100,000 pension at age 30? They do exist. All because of unions. What would be a reasonable pension? 5k a year tops. Perhaps 5.1k if the company were feeling generous.

No I have not heard. Post some links to back it up.

 

[Hacp]

Yea we sometimes have a easier time getting older lawyers as they don;t want the 80hr work week anymore and will take a "pay cut" to be able to see their kids/family. While new out of college lawyers only see the $$$ and go for the money without thinking "salary/hours =..."

Most new lawyers these days can't get a job. They're making 35-40k with 200+k in debt.

 

[Hacp]

No I have not heard. Post some links to back it up.

Here. Straight from the liberal panacea, the new york times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/business/economy/21pension.html?hp

 

[Vette73]

Here. Straight from the liberal panacea, the new york times.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/21/business/economy/21pension.html?hp

I guess you missed the part...

"He started out more than three decades ago in the Westchester County government"

and he worked in the medical field and turned around a Hospital yet was paid less then he could have made in the private sector. The person that replaced him makes more than double.
So he worked 30+years, made less then he could have got in the private sector, and turned around a county hospital and helped move it to a public benefit corporation that saved the county money. Yea what a scam.

 

[Hacp]

I guess you missed the part...

"He started out more than three decades ago in the Westchester County government"

and he worked in the medical field and turned around a Hospital yet was paid less then he could have made in the private sector. The person that replaced him makes more than double.
So he worked 30+years, made less then he could have got in the private sector, and turned around a county hospital and helped move it to a public benefit corporation that saved the county money. Yea what a scam.

Read the part where there are multiple people in their 30s with pensions over 100k and a shitload of people with pensions over 200k. All on the taxpayer dime. List of everyone in NY and NJ ALONE fleecing the productive taxpayer.

http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/files/2008/05/nys-100k-plus-pensions.xls

 

[nick1985]

Make less than a private world counterpart? Are you serious?

Yes. I can speak for the world of IT at my location. System Administrators are paid ~50-55k. What is a sys admin paid in the private world for some corporation? I'd bet a fuckton more than that.

 

[Hacp]

Yes. I can speak for the world of IT at my location. System Administrators are paid ~50-55k. What is a sys admin paid in the private world for some corporation? I'd bet a fuckton more than that.

Well government should make a conscious effort to hire the cheapest possible worker. A dime over the lowest possible salary is an extra dime taxed.

 

[nick1985]

Well government should make a conscious effort to hire the cheapest possible worker. A dime over the lowest possible salary is an extra dime taxed.

We all know that the cheapest employees are always the most efficient and never lead to long term problems. You get what you pay for

 

[Mursilis]

Most new lawyers these days can't get a job. They're making 35-40k with 200+k in debt.

Unless you were top 10 in your class, and/or graduated from an elite school, that's pretty true.

 

[Mursilis]

Heard of the guy making 222,222 dollars in pensions at age 44? How bout the guy with a 100,000 pension at age 30? They do exist. All because of unions. What would be a reasonable pension? 5k a year tops. Perhaps 5.1k if the company were feeling generous.

The local, state, and federal levels are all different. I'm sure there's a good bit of corruption at the local and maybe even the state level, but I'd like to know of a fed with a $100k pension at 30. The federal unions vary in strength. Ours just got smacked around by the NLRB in a big work requirements case.

 

[rudder]

time stop offering pensions to new state employees and have them contribute to their own retirement accounts.

who the hell came up with a system as unsustainable as pensions???

The unions. I would say that is a state issue, but the Federal government needs to stop offering pensions to all new employees as well. The pension has always been offered to sweeten the pot and encourage people to take federal jobs earning less than their private sector counterparts. Federal wages are way up and and top of that the sweet pension package, as far as I know, is still there.

federal jobs are the golden goose now.

 

[rudder]

Yes. I can speak for the world of IT at my location. System Administrators are paid ~50-55k. What is a sys admin paid in the private world for some corporation? I'd bet a fuckton more than that.

Depends on the area. I would leave my job today if I could find something that did not pay less and required 52 years of Cisco CNE experience. The state of tennessee employs some people who are good with cisco but without certs and they earn $80K-120K/year and get a pension of 50% of their salary at 30 years. You cannot find a gig like that in Tennessee unless it is working for the state.

 

[nick1985]

Depends on the area. I would leave my job today if I could find something that did not pay less and required 52 years of Cisco CNE experience. The state of tennessee employs some people who are good with cisco but without certs and they earn $80K-120K/year and get a pension of 50% of their salary at 30 years. You cannot find a gig like that in Tennessee unless it is working for the state.

I'm in the Chicagoland area. I know for a FACT sys admins in companies around here make more than 55k, and a lot make more than double that.

 

[Mursilis]

The unions. I would say that is a state issue, but the Federal government needs to stop offering pensions to all new employees as well. The pension has always been offered to sweeten the pot and encourage people to take federal jobs earning less than their private sector counterparts. Federal wages are way up and and top of that the sweet pension package, as far as I know, is still there.

federal jobs are the golden goose now.

I think you really need to freshen up your knowledge of the federal pension system (FERS). It's not quite the golden goose you may think it is. For most employees, it will equal (at best, after 30 years of service) a little less than a 1/3 of their highest salary while working. And just FYI, feds do pay into the system. It's not just a freebie.

 

[Hacp]

I think you really need to freshen up your knowledge of the federal pension system (FERS). It's not quite the golden goose you may think it is. For most employees, it will equal (at best, after 30 years of service) a little less than a 1/3 of their highest salary while working. And just FYI, feds do pay into the system. It's not just a freebie.

Its still outrageous. In an era where very few private corporations are offering pensions, government is still offering them. That doesn't sound right.

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

I'm in the Chicagoland area. I know for a FACT sys admins in companies around here make more than 55k, and a lot make more than double that.

so what's keeping you from going to those companies?
better perks at the govt job?

 

[nick1985]

so what's keeping you from going to those companies?
better perks at the govt job?

experience

 

[Sinsear]

Read the part where there are multiple people in their 30s with pensions over 100k and a shitload of people with pensions over 200k. All on the taxpayer dime. List of everyone in NY and NJ ALONE fleecing the productive taxpayer.

http://blog.timesunion.com/capitol/files/2008/05/nys-100k-plus-pensions.xls

Thanks for posting that. I'm glad to get a glimpse of what my retirement will look like.

 

[cubby1223]

I'm proud to report that Wisconsin's pension system is doing just fine, close to or #1 in the country, IIRC.

Sweet, so we here in Illinois will elect representatives to the federal government to siphon your money away from you and in to our broken pension system!

To quote our President "I think when you spread the wealth around, it’s good for everybody"

 

[BlahBlahYouToo]

experience

so basically they make more than you because they know more than you.
seems logical to me.

 

[rudder]

I think you really need to freshen up your knowledge of the federal pension system (FERS). It's not quite the golden goose you may think it is. For most employees, it will equal (at best, after 30 years of service) a little less than a 1/3 of their highest salary while working. And just FYI, feds do pay into the system. It's not just a freebie.

I was basing it what my dad is earning on his federal pension. He obviously started working for the feds a long time ago so it likely changed. I still stand by my opinion that you are in excellent shape if you can land a federal job. Vacation, sick leave, insurance bennie, pension, it is really good.