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COMMUNICATOR HOMEPAGE
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| Tiers 1, 2 get best pensions To the Editor: I do not understand why some Tier 1 and 2 members say Tier 3 and 4 members have a better pension than they do. In the February issue of The Communicator, a Tier 2 member writes that a Tier 3 or 4 member with 30 years of service and a $50,000 annual salary will receive $1,200 more per year than a Tier 2 member with the same 30 years of service and $50,000 annual salary. His calculation obviously assumes that a Tier 3 or 4 member will be able to average into his or her final average salary the entire lump-sum check for selling 225 hours of vacation accruals. This is almost never true and is stated as such on the state comptroller’s Website. Only a small part of this lump-sum check gets averaged in because of the 10 percent rule that applies to Tiers 3 and 4. A Tier 2 employee with 30 years of service gets 64 percent of his final average salary as a pension, while a Tier 3 or Tier 4 employee with 30 years of service receives 60 percent of his final average salary as a pension. This means Tier 3 and 4 members with 30 years of service earning $50,000 will actually receive $2,000 less per year than a similar Tier 1 or 2 member. Even with the lump-sum vacation payment averaged into the final average salary, the Tier 3 or 4 member receives a smaller pension than a Tier 1 or 2 member. This difference increases as the years of service increase. LAYNE J. LAJOY Albany Editor’s note: Late Tier 1 and all Tier 2 employees cannot get service credit for vacation accruals. Tuition program spared her debt To the Editor: I became a member of PEF when I joined the state Education Department in 1979. During that time I have enjoyed such union benefits as inexpensive short-and long-term disability insurance and reduced-price tickets to my favorite movie theatre. My purpose, however, is to inform you of how important the union’s tuition assistance program — the tuition voucher program — has been for me. In December 2002, I graduated with my Ph.D. in history from the state University of New York at Albany. It took me 9.5 years to complete my doctoral program. But, because of the tuition assistance program, I was very fortunate to have no educational debt when I graduated. I thank PEF so much for providing me and my fellow union members with such a wonderful benefit. I hope that as time goes by, PEF will continue to provide tuition assistance to its members as they pursue higher education. MARGARET LYNCH-BRENNAN Albany Retired, but still a ‘PEFer’ To the Editor: I have submitted my retirement papers and am now officially retired. I am, therefore, submitting my resignation from the PEF Executive Board. Also my membership on the Legal Appeals panel, I believe, lapses with my status as a regular member. I have enrolled as a PEF Retirees member and hope to remain active in this way. I have found my time as a union steward and Executive Board member to be some of the most rewarding times in my entire state career. I will never forget the contract rallies in Albany, Rochester, and at the State Fair in Syracuse. Personally, I have found PEF to be one of the most open and democratic organizations I have ever been a part of. Its leaders (officers, Executive Board members and council leaders) have been some of the most self-less people I have been acquainted with. I know PEF is in good hands and I offer any assistance I can in my new status. I will always be a PEFer. PATRICK LEANZA Ballston Spa The Communicator Letters policy We welcome letters to the editor about union issues and events relevant to PEF's diverse membership. All letters are subject to editing for space, fairness and good taste. Please keep them brief (up to one page, double-spaced or a maximum of 250 words), and please include your name and phone number for verification. Send letters to: The Communicator Public Employees Federation P.O. Box 12414 Albany, N.Y. 12212-2414 email Denyce Duncan Lacy, Executive Editor The Communicator - Director of Public Relations dduncanlacy@pef.org Sherry Halbrook, Editor of The Communicator- shalbrook@pef.org |
