pensions

Judge rules state workers don’t have to pay for retiree health coverage

By Naomi Lopez Bauman

08/29/2014

An Illinois 7th Circuit judge has ruled that the state cannot make deductions from state retirees’ pension checks for their retiree health insurance coverage. Based on this temporary injunction, state retirees no longer have to pay 1- 2 percent of their pension check for their retirement health-insurance coverage. Judge Steven Nardulli of the state’s 7th...

TAGS: health care, pensions, state worker pay

Arizona firefighters fight for retirement security

08/20/2014

Given they depend on the nation’s worst-funded pension systems for their retirement security, Illinois’ government workers may want to take a look at how a group of Arizona firefighters are responding to pension-fund problems of their own. Arizona’s firefighters fear that out-of-control pension costs could bankrupt cities in Arizona, resulting in cuts to pensions like...

TAGS: Bryan Jeffries, Chicago, pensions

Millennials reject broken, traditional retirement benefits

07/23/2014

Most millennials don’t trust Social Security, according to a spring 2014 survey from Reason-Rupe: The report found that: “Fifty-three percent of millennials say Social Security is ‘unlikely’ to exist when they are 67 years old, while 45 percent say it probably will remain. But if it does exist at that time, even fewer millennials believe...

TAGS: Chicago, millennials, pensions

Flint offers grim look at the future of Illinois’ pension crisis

By Benjamin VanMetre

07/21/2014

Illinois isn’t the only place where retiree health insurance costs are destroying state and local budgets. For the latest example of where the Land of Lincoln could be heading, look no further than Flint, Michigan. Unless the city of Flint enacts reform, retiree pension and health expenses will consume $0.32 of every $1 in Flint’s...

TAGS: Chicago, Flint, pensions

Real pension reform includes a reality check for retiree health benefits

By Benjamin VanMetre

07/14/2014

Illinois’ budget battle took a turn for the worse earlier this month. A decision by the Illinois Supreme Court put the state and its taxpayers at risk. The Supreme Court ruled that Illinois has its hands tied when it comes to reforming retiree health insurance benefits for government workers. The problem is that Illinois has...

TAGS: debt, pensions

Illinois pension debt ranks second-worst in the nation

By John Klingner

07/11/2014

Illinois has once again earned the dubious honor of having one of the worst pension crises in the nation. This week, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, or CEI, released a report, “Understanding Public Pension Debt,” which combined the state rankings of several different pension debt studies, including reports by Moody’s Investors Service and the U.S. Census...

TAGS: Chicago, debt, pensions

Stockton bankruptcy: Federal judge hints that pensions ‘can be adjusted’

By John Klingner

07/10/2014

The California city of Stockton’s bankruptcy case took an interesting turn yesterday. The big question surrounding the city’s bankruptcy has always been what might happen to city employee pensions. Most government advocates assumed that these pensions would remain untouched no matter what happened to Stockton’s finances. Now the federal judge in charge of the bankruptcy...

TAGS: bankruptcy, pensions

End legislative pensions in Illinois

06/23/2014

Illinois’ lawmakers often blame unions for the Illinois General Assembly’s inability to pass real pension reform. “The unions will never allow it” is the common chorus when it comes to proposing bold reforms like those recently passed in Oklahoma, which put nearly all new state workers on 401(k)-style plans, or those passed in many other...

TAGS: 401(k), pensions

Mayor Emanuel’s property tax hikes: $750 million is just the beginning

04/08/2014

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s pension proposal, which is headed to Gov. Quinn’s desk, does very little to reform how Chicago’s pension systems work. Under his plan, workers and taxpayers would experience more of the same tired game, except they would be expected to contribute more to keep it afloat. But if Emanuel is going to rely...

TAGS: pensions, Rahm Emanuel

What Mayor Emanuel’s pension proposal does and doesn’t do

04/01/2014

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel has reportedly struck a pension deal with city employees who are members of the Municipal and Laborers pension funds. The deal only affects half of the city’s workers. Firefighters and policemen, as well as its teachers, park and transit workers, are not included. The deal, which calls for a five-year, $750...

TAGS: pensions

Pathway to a Profession: How Apprenticeships Could Reshape Illinois’ Beauty Service Industry

Occupational licensing requirements present one of the steepest barriers to low-income Illinoisans starting careers in beauty services. Illinois requires anyone seeking to become a barber, cosmetologist, nail technician or hair braider to obtain a state license, essentially a permission slip to work. Unlike 45 other states, Illinois offers only one pathway to licensure for each...

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