bomgd3 t1_iy3ywgl wrote on November 28, 2022 at 4:04 PM

Reply to comment by SKIPPY_IS_REAL in Connecticut lawmakers begin special session on gas tax, hero pay, and more by jr_reddit

I'm a state employee. The current pension is not very generous at all. In fact it's downright stingy. I think it's 0.13 x years of service after 10 years of service starting at age 65 and they take 5% of your gross salary per year to fund it. It's really not that great and you can do a lot better with average S&P500 returns. People who started earlier in state employment had much better terms. They can't really renege on prior obligations without bankruptcy, but future obligations should be much more reasonable. The 401k-style plan is pretty attractive so I think the state is trying to encourage most to avoid the pension in the future. Most of my coworkers I've spoken to have not chosen the pension plan

giant_toad42 t1_iy4sn5w wrote on November 28, 2022 at 7:22 PM

You know pensions are an anomaly these days. Be happy you have one at all.

Do you still get state provided non-Medicare healthcare after retirement too?

bomgd3 t1_iy5dqks wrote on November 28, 2022 at 9:40 PM

I didn't choose the pension option but I guess it's nice to have for people who don't want to monitor their own investments.

To get the healthcare benefit after retirement you have to pay 3% of your gross salary into the healthcare fund for 15 years. It's quite a chunk of change

giant_toad42 t1_iy5gtom wrote on November 28, 2022 at 10:01 PM

Wow. Totally worth it, IMO. As a cost - damn, that's actually cheap and extremely reasonable.

If you can afford it, take it.

SKIPPY_IS_REAL t1_iy40h12 wrote on November 28, 2022 at 4:15 PM

That's actually good to hear. In the past I believe it was after 2 years of service and the budget has slightly improved thanks to Lamont. I know it is also public sector union pension credits and such that are hurting us as well. Not necessarily just state employees. I am an E-2 electrician for the state and we get a ridiculous payout. While I would hate to see it go, I recognize a lot of our benefits are related to the high cost of energy here. The sad part is, the average E-2 makes $85k+ per year and most of my coworkers live pay check to pay check because they see no consequence to doing so.

bomgd3 t1_iy5d48j wrote on November 28, 2022 at 9:36 PM

Let me guess, they all drive $50K pickup trucks?

SKIPPY_IS_REAL t1_iy5egxf wrote on November 28, 2022 at 9:45 PM

They absolutely do. I try to provide budget advice to people I work with. I was enlisted navy and learned to mostly stay within an E-5 salary so I save allot. They really just don't have the financial responsibility they need and don't want to change their life styles or don't want to fight with their spouses about cutting back.

SKIPPY_IS_REAL t1_iy5fr03 wrote on November 28, 2022 at 9:54 PM

That being said, the people who have moved down south don't have the same costs on the basics so it does have an effect. Eating well in this state for a family of 4 is about $1000 a month, gas is expensive here, when I first moved back to CT my car tax quadrupled even though my car was a year older. Insurance is higher and even health care costs more.