Saving Pensions Will Require Unions To Face Reality

By Edward Ring
08/27/2013
“Not surprisingly, within moments of news of Detroit’s bankruptcy, pension scare mongers took to their pedestals to place all the blame on pensions. California, Los Angeles, and other governments would surely follow Detroit’s footsteps in short order, they cried. It’s simply not true, like most of the claims made by the anti-pension soldiers who have...

TAGS: 401K, AFSCME, defined benefit, defined contribution, Detroit bankruptcy, Public sector pensions, public sector unions

Social Security is Healthy Compared to Public Sector Pensions

By Edward Ring
08/02/2013
Last week yet another missive on the lessons to be learned from Detroit’s bankruptcy was published, this time in Forbes Magazine by Jeffrey Dorfman, an economist at the University of Georgia. Dorfman’s article, “Detroit’s Bankruptcy Should Be A Warning To Every Worker Expecting A Pension, Or Social Security,” clearly implies that future Social Security benefits...

TAGS: Detroit bankruptcy, Public sector pensions, Social Security, U.S. Census Bureau

California Pension Reformers Plan New State Ballot Initiative

By Steven Greenhut
07/18/2013
A statewide constitutional initiative planned for 2014 would tackle the biggest obstacle to meaningful pension reform: vested benefits. Right now, with certain exceptions, California municipalities may not reduce pension benefits for current employees—unlike in the private sector, where employers can change the terms of employees’ current pension plans, making them less generous. The courts have...

TAGS: BART strike, California pension reform, CalPERS, Pacific Grove pension reform, Public sector pensions, San Jose mayor Chuck Reed, San Jose pension reform

How Public Sector Unions Skew America’s Public Safety and National Security Agenda

By Edward Ring
06/18/2013
It would be redundant to summarize recent revelations concerning just how big America’s national security state has become. Two reports, both written in the last two days, do a really good job: “The Making of a Global Security State,” by Tom Engelhardt, published by The Nation Institute, and “5 Alarming Things We Should Have Already...

TAGS: public sector compensation, Public sector pensions, public sector unions, Reason Foundation

New Actuarial Rules Will Force States to Admit Pension Problems

By Mike Shedlock
06/18/2013
Editor’s Note:  This post by UnionWatch contributor Mike Shedlock covers familiar territory. Our parent organization, the California Public Policy Center, has published detailed analyses of the new GASB and Moody’s rules, including: “Moody’s Final Adopted Adjustments of Government Pension Data,” “How New Rules from Moody’s and GASB Affect the Financial Reporting of Pensions in Seven...

TAGS: California pensions, Public sector pensions