Funding public pensions

[thekid65]

If these people have been employed under certain conditions then they are entitled to keep them. I bet these government workers are hardly living the high life. You get a few perks in government jobs and thats part of what attracts people to want to work in the public sector.

I don't think its right that these jobs are going overseas to cheap labour. And those jobs going overseas have a ripple effect on your whole community and government jobs. Isnt Michael Moore's hometown a ghost town now because of all the working class jobs shutting down. That would also effect infrastructure and the public sector jobs because of services need per population.

Thank you so much for picking me up on "your". I am writing quickly because I am busy too. The point of this is to express your opinion not spell check.

I love the way you guys are ganging up on me in a typical right wing way. Like a pack of bullies.

"A few perks"...heh, that's funny. Yes they may get a "few", but they are quite valuable ones indeed. Me? I contribute 8% of my salary to my 401K in the hope that I can retire at a reasonable age. The company I work for used to match my contributions up to 5%, but have ceased doing so due to the ailing economy. Union public employees in the State of Wisc (which is why this discussion is taking place)? Almost nothing, the taxpayers take care of the pensions.

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Now, lets talk health insurance. Me? Over $800/month ($841 to be precise) out of my salary to insure my family (wife and 1 kid). For public union employees of Wisc to cover themselves and their families? $85/month, with the rest being picked up by the taxpayers.

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The main gripe the unions are having with the Gov of Wisc, is that he want's to eliminate their collective bargaining rights. So wahhhhh, they will have the same rights as those of us who work for non-union private employers. I, like a lot of public employees, have not received a salary raise in over 2 years. Instead my company has gone to a profit sharing program, whereas if the company makes money, I/we get a percentage of the profits on a quarterly basis. If my company loses money, or breaks even, obviously I get nadda. I have no say-so in these matters, it is what it is, and I'm grateful to have a job in which I can support my family. I'm entitled to nothing. If the volatile semiconductor market takes a shit, then folks in my plant get laid off, as the company I work for will not have the money to pay them. Much like state employees, we too, a couple of years ago were had furloughs forced upon us, so that the company could survive.

Finally, going back to pensions, the average age at which the state public employee retires at is age 58 (thank you, Joe Q. Taxpayer), while most of the rest of us hope we can retire around 65 or so, albeit, that # seems to be rising over the last decade.

Fuck the unions. They are no longer needed. This isnt the early 1900's where employers can get away with abusing their employees. They drive up the prices of American goods making it hard to compete in the global market. They make it very difficult to fire incompetent employees....and the money that union workers are forced to contribute to the unions could be better spent on their own retirement savings.