New York Governor Cuomo Proposes Major Cuts in New York Public Employee Pensions

[Better Believe It]

Cuomo Urges Broad Limits to N.Y. Public Pensions
By DANNY HAKIM and THOMAS KAPLAN
June 8, 2011

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, joining a parade of officials from across the country who are seeking to rein in spending by limiting public employees’ pensions, proposed Wednesday to broadly limit retirement benefits for new city and state workers in New York.

The president of the New York State Public Employees Federation, Kenneth Brynien, attacked the proposal as “draconian pension cuts that would inflict permanent damage on middle-class workers such as nurses, parole officers, bridge inspectors and cancer researchers for what is a transient problem.”

“This is about politics and placating big-business special interests, plain and simple,” Mr. Brynien added.

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, who has frequently bemoaned the effect of high pension costs on New York City spending, said he was delighted with the new proposal because Mr. Cuomo’s legislation encompassed proposals by the mayor’s office for the city pension system.

Read the full article at:

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/09/nyregion/cuomo-proposes-tough-limits-on-pensions.html?_r=1&ref=nyregion&pagewanted=all

Here's some of the main provisions of Governor Cuomo's proposed cuts:

1. Raise the minimum retirement age to 65 from 62 for state workers, and to 65 from 57 for teachers.

2. Double the amount state employees are required to contribute of their salaries into the pension system from 3 percent to 6 percent.

3. Exclude overtime earnings from pension calculations.

4. Ban use of unused sick leave or unused vacation time to increase pension calculations.

5. Increase the years of work required for vesting from 10 to 12 years.

BBI

[Better Believe It]

1. Unions blast Cuomo’s pension plan

Unions blast Cuomo’s pension plan
The Business Review - by Adam Sichko
June 9, 2011

Danny Donohue, president of the Civil Service Employees Association, labeled Cuomo’s plan as “grandstanding” to “score cheap political points.” CSEA is the largest union representing state workers, with about 66,000 members, including 18,000 who live in the Capital Region.

“Congratulations to Gov. Cuomo for another grandstand play for the attention of his millionaire friends at the expense of the real working people of New York,” Donohue said. “The governor’s onerous proposal will pick the pockets of front-line public workers and undermine their retirement security, without providing any short-term savings.”

“This is about politics and placating big-business special interests, plain and simple,” said PEF (Public Employees Federation) president Ken Brynien. The union represents 56,000 white-collar state workers, including 19,000 who live locally.

“This is just another attack on middle-class workers at the behest of big business and corporations,” said Andrew Pallotta, executive vice president of Latham-based NYSUT (New York State United Teachers). “This is a diversion from the real issues that face our state, such as New York’s failure to adequately provide the resources that students in its public schools need."

http://www.bizjournals.com/albany/blog/insider/2011/06/unions-blast-cuomos-pension-plan.html?page=all

[adigal]

2. Teaching until 65??? Snort!!

Most teachers cannot handle teaching children or teens until they are 65. That is a long time in the classroom - from 22 years old to 65 years old. Think the teacher might be a wee bit tired?? I love teaching, I love my students, but teaching until 65 is a long time!! And I am not in a good pension "tier," - if I retire at age 55 with 25 years teaching, I get 26% of about 60K. You try to live on that in NY. So I will never really retire, just retire from teaching.