Jackson Jambalaya

Cannot wait!

To the teachers and public employees of Mississippi, the reason for the taxpayers' concern over your retirement is we the taxpayers are having to help support it with the Public Employees Retirement System (PERS).

Maybe if the state workers want us to put tax money in their retirement, they would like to contribute to our Social Security. Most of the average work force do not get the benefits the state workers get - early retirement, holidays off, weeks of vacation, 3 percent raises, etc.

I think you all should stop complaining and fund your own program.

I wonder at what point federal and state workers started thinking they deserve more benefits than the rest of us.

I'm with Cap'n. Baited breath and all that.....

Actually, I do contribute to your social security.

I think what is sad is that the retirees are currently left feeling like they are on their own.

As I understand all the material published on PERS currently, anyone who has paid up to this point is GUARANTEED their retirement under the program and previous programs as outlined during the time they paid into the program.

The issue is, pensions are done, toast, a thing of the past, over, kaput. They have been proven in many instances throughout the private sector and public sector to be unsustainable.

Changes are necessary. The scare tactics of a particular part that the commission is anything but a review of the current system and is taking an effort to provide solutions to an ailing, and according to the actuarial report, failing system.

I am of the opinion that problems are meant to be solved. You are not going to make all of the people happy all of the time, but failure for all is not an appropriate solution (that being retirees and taxpayers).

I welcome the commission report and hope that they have the same constructive criticism that ended my pension over seven years ago. It wasn't pleasant, but it was the best solution for all involved (employees, retirees, shareholders). In this instance, retirees already paid in to a certain point received full benefits, while others received a hybrid/bridged benefit, and then there was those of us that got the 401K match and nothing more.

The reality of austerity our country will go through in the coming years is just starting. Get ready.

Anon 4:40's post above appeared in the Clarion over the weekend.

I'll only address a few of her points: Why bitch about 'holidays off'? Let me know who does NOT get holidays off.

Regarding your 3% raise comment, state employees can typically go three, four, five years without a raise, much less a 3% raise. If you work in private industry, you know that's not the case where you are.

As to your 'weeks of vacation', I can think of hundreds of private industry businesses that grant their employees two, three, four, five, up to seven weeks of paid vacation depending on years of employment.

Your whining is without merit.

"Most of the workforce" don't go to work for 23K (or less) with a college degree or master's degree either. And in the case of some public servants, much, much less.

And before everyone starts to scream PERS is healthy please read the linked article and the attached reports, they are jaw dropping.

KK: Instead of your incessant whining about what you consider the insolvency of PERS, why don't you do your civic duty and ask the powers that be if they can use your expertise to reverse the problems?

From some of your posts, I'm led to believe you're in the business of forecasting market trends and investments. Are you just pissed that you are not involved in the PERS piece of the industry?

Now, before you jump my shit, remember, this is just an offhand observation that is open for discussion.

To 4:40

While you are sitting at home on your "holidays off", who do you think is protecting your home from crime or fire, coming out to fix your broken waterline so you can have your holiday dinner, and taking care of you when you get drunk and break your noggin on a holiday? And they do it for much less than most of the private sector doing similar jobs. Yeah, you will probably say that they should have gotten a better education or that they took the job knowing the pay. Well they took the job knowing the retirement benefits, hoping to make 30, retire, and start another career in the private sector to make a comfortable living for their golden years. Early retirement my ass. Find me a rank and file PERS employee that can make it on their retirement alone. Also, keep in mind that they pay the same taxes you do on top of their contribution to PERS. I agree that PERS needs to be carefully monitored and that some changes that negatively impact the retiree might have to happen but don't act like these public employees are riding some kind of gravy train.

Frankly my dear, I don't give a shit. Strike that. I'm just trying to help those who might think something is for free, costs something. There is no free lunch.

I like math. No personal stake in this game, except for I've been through it and I have a job that pays taxes.

To listen to whining as you put it, I'm a bit indifferent. I would like to see the best foot put forward.

Ditto 8:23 PM.

And don't forget that 4:40 will most likely be the first one bitch'n the next time a haz-mat team
is needed on the interstate @ 3 am. Or if the
the damn roads aren't sanded down during an ( Ice Storm) night so 4:40's commute to the Mall can be less dangerous the next morning.

Not to worry , 4:40 will scream the loudest when his/her private sector job ends and 4:40 will be
dependent upon the State Employees for the basics.

I agree, PERS and the SPB need reform . The bad employees that give all Govt. workers a bad rep need
to be fired immediately. Maybe the 2012 House, Senate & Governor can fix that.

I'm also with you on the raise comment. I don't remember the last time State Employees
received any across the board pay raise.

The teachers are entirely different argument.

Until then, lets focus on eliminating SLURP for any future politicians.

** YAWN **

I'm a relatively new state employee with 3 years of state employment after over 20 in the private sector. I don't believe PERS promises and will frankly just be glad to receive back the amount I've been required to contribute to PERS, same as I feel about Social Security. The way things are going I doubt I'll even get that.

The waste in the state agency I work for is appalling. A tremendous number of mid-level manager positions exist that have poorly defined responsibilities ... so many of these "managers" are just walking around gossiping all day, while receiving $50-70,000 salaries. Unbelievable!

1) 4:40 - you are uninformed at best and a lying idiot at worst - state employees DO PAY Social Security

2) state employees get a raise every election year; that's about it

3) I lost a good employee at a state agency because we were NOT ALLOWED to gice her a raise to match another offer even through the money was in the budget. We were told by higher-ups that no employee could get an individual raise unless they got a promotion; only across-the-board raises are authorized for state employees. She left.

4) Anyone relying on anyone besides themselves to provide for your retirement is foolish. The money is no longer there. The Ponzi sceams are all running out of steam.

Local governments like our state government were created for a different era. Our state could consolidate counties along the lines of community college districts to make local government more rational and sustainable. State colleges should be combined and the IHL closed. Governor-Elect will be requiring tight missions, metrics & oversight on state agencies. PERS is a only part it.

Many manufacturing firms and other corporate entities have for a number of years relied on metrics, metric boards, lean journey and demonstrable production boards to plan, gauge success and highlight deficiencies.

If 9:44 is suggesting Phil Bryant or any other state employee is about to attempt that, I want to be sure to show up to witness the circle jerk. Hell, it took the State Personnel Board six years to design the first employee performance review drafts. And that was just a DRAFT.

Suddenly I've replaced visions of sugar plums with visions of thousands of consultants.

"National debt rating for State as a whole at risk because of PERS."

Well it looks like all the Hubba-balloo from the Dems were scare tactics. The recommendation was on target with the analysis, but in the end the recommendation was pretty tepid. Rational, but tepid.

And for all those bitching about a guaranteed COLA at 3%; it is not appropriate. Tied to CPI is the correct way to calculate increase or no increase if negative, it is called COST OF LIVING Adjustment, not guaranteed increase in excess of inflation!

Opposition has already backed off their original attacks against Barbour and has been left holding the bag. The only thing left for them to complain about is a guaranteed COLA increase that continues to quickly erode the principle left in PERS and leave it deeper in the whole relative to future solvency.

I perused the report, need to study it.

12:34, state agency heads have seen across the board cuts, seen the Gov.Elect's white papers, thought about statistics, and re-drafted mission statements so their budgets look reasonable to the lawmakers & new governor. So the work has been done. No consultants required unless you start talking seriously about rationalizing higher education and county organization. No we really need 82 counties and eight universities in a poor state?

Kangaroo: It's called a cost of living increase but was voted on at a guaranteed level which I'm sure you know is like a guaranteed rate of return. It's simply set at 3%. If the CPI suggests 6, it's still 3. Would you complain then?

Forgive me, I would still argue for tied to CPI or an inflation measure, NOT a guaranteed 3%.

And please know, I am FOR sound financial advice to preserve a system and strengthen options in the face of a crumbling one.

I'm not for putting people in the poor house, taking away opportunity to live well. The issue is that there is not enough education or discussion around PERS in the media to help retirees understand that PERS is facing an abysmal future.

I would love to see a fix and one that will preserve as much capital that has already been paid into the system. With the route it is headed, it will only consume the principle and threaten the very viability of the larger government under a PERS that is a drain on all in this Great State.

8:21; 12:34 here. The multitude of consultants on white stallions I envision are those responding to Bryants efforts to put metric-boards and lean-journey charts in place as management tools.

9:44 made the suggestion. Pay attention.

All state employees do not get that 3% raise each year. The "department" gets 3% and the department heads decide how much each employee gets. Naturally, once it trickles down to the low level employees, it's definitely not 3% per employee. Those at the bottom of the totem pole are the ones that need it most and they get the least. I don't have a dog in that race but I did work for the state for 5 years. Never again!

OK. I am now convinced no one actually reads. When the heck did we start talking about a 3% wage increase?