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Strategies & Market Trends : The Residential Real Estate Crash Index -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: marcher who wrote (244047)	4/13/2010 8:05:16 PM
From: ajtj99	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 306849

I just spoke with a public safety officer who was canvassing my neighborhood pushing a millage increase to pay the raises they want in their new contract expiring soon (well, he didn't put it that way, but that's basically what's going on). Their medical program costs from $3,000 to $5,000 per year more than a typical public sector program. They can retire at age 55 or after 30-years with full retirement benefits, including continued medical benefits. That's $15,000/year in cost for the medical benefits for retirees alone. He even admitted to me it was stupid to have 30-years and out, and he had plans for a second career at age 50 just because he could under the system. He's planning for it. He thought he should not be able to retire any earlier than a private sector worker. He also agreed it was inequitable for a person with his education to attain the kind of compensation his union gets for him from his municipality when he could never get that much in the private sector. He even admitted that he thought it was not right to have a better medical program than what's available in the private sector, but that's what was attained in bargaining.