Bertram states "You, the taxpayers who contribute to public employees’ pension plans, are permitted by law to only two pieces of information: one, whether an employee is retired; two, the salary at the time of retirement.
In an attempt to appease newspapers around the state demanding an end to the secrecy, the pension system has tossed out a bone — the formula used to calculate pensions."
Bertram is at minimum one of the following: lazy, intellectually challenged, guilty of bearing false witness to his readers.
Anyone with an internet connection (it's free at the public library) can go to the following websites to learn probably more than you care to know about the state's four employee retirement systems:
These websites are available 365 24/7 and include a plethora of information of everything you want to know about pension and retirement health care benefits for public employees in Ohio They include articles, graphs, charts, videos, up to the minute news releases, links, forms, etc., etc. These sites have been available for years and best of all, you don't need to register, you don't need to get special permisssion from an "insider", and you don't even need a secret password to visit these sites. So much for shrouded in secrecy. Bertram has been barking to have a bone thrown his way from the Ohio retirement systems and it's been sitting in his bowl for 20 years.
Also, about ten years ago, Vindicator golden boy George Tablack, the poster child for retire/rehire, retired under OPERS after he was County Auditor and was subsequently hired by Mahoning County as County Administrator at a much higher salary than when he left County government. Betram and the Vindicator political writers weren't the least bit critical of this retire/rehire. In fact, this retire/rehire story apparently wasn't even worth the ink to print. Not a mention. Not a peep. Bertram was probably intimidated by George's pompous demeanor and didn't want to get on his bad side by reporting what should have been a double dipper of a story.
The rush to retire is not now as Bertram states. The rush ended January 1, 2013 with the guaranteed 3% COLA's for life.
He makes it sound like using a government vehicle to travel in is a luxury. It really isn't and it actually saves local governments thousands of dollars a year as opposed to reimbursing employees the IRS approved rate of $0.565 per mile driven using their personal vehicle. He throws around the words "plush" and "exotic" as if government employees are staying two weeks at five star hotels on the French Riviera or Waikiki Beach when more often than not, it's one overnight stay at a Red Roof Inn or Microtel on the outskirts of Columbus.
He talks about government employees making $100,000 a year (with the added comment that there are many more of those than you may think). A good journalist would have published the list of who these six figure employees are in the tri-county area (not including YSU as they are in a different league) since he is claiming to know there are many. Or is it just another unsubstantiated hunch that he has. My bet is the latter.
The rants of the multiplication factors of 10%, then 20%, then 30% are pointless mumbo jumbo that could have been written by an average 8th grader.
Retire/rehire is an entirely legally thing to do. With a shrinking tax base and state governement balancing it's budget on the backs of local government, retire/rehire is now a necessity for many political subdivisions and school districts as you can hire the same person back for half of what they were making and on a part-time basis thus not requiring that health care be provided for that employee saving even more money.
Bertram and others may not like that (and I detect some jealousy), but as a business move, ten out of ten financial analysts would tell you it's a no brainer, a fiscally prudent move to make.
However, for a retire/rehire to come back full time, with benefits and at the same rate of pay as they had at retirement, is a piggish move that should be disallowed as all of the financial gains are in the favor of the retiree, not the local government.
Probably true. Pelini has to learn to keep his emotions more in check (if that is even possible) or he won't be able to recruit top talent. His Bobby Knight-like outbursts don't work in 2013.
Racing commission to continue talks on racino design
Both sides need to compromise and put the politics aside. Don't be like the knuckleheads in D.C. Get it done.
April 16, 2013 at 11:24 p.m. permalink suggest removal
Public pensions a travesty
Bertram states "You, the taxpayers who contribute to public employees’ pension plans, are permitted by law to only two pieces of information: one, whether an employee is retired; two, the salary at the time of retirement.
In an attempt to appease newspapers around the state demanding an end to the secrecy, the pension system has tossed out a bone — the formula used to calculate pensions."
Bertram is at minimum one of the following: lazy, intellectually challenged, guilty of bearing false witness to his readers.
Anyone with an internet connection (it's free at the public library) can go to the following websites to learn probably more than you care to know about the state's four employee retirement systems:
www.opers.org
www.ohsers.org
www.strsoh.org
www.op-f.org
These websites are available 365 24/7 and include a plethora of information of everything you want to know about pension and retirement health care benefits for public employees in Ohio They include articles, graphs, charts, videos, up to the minute news releases, links, forms, etc., etc. These sites have been available for years and best of all, you don't need to register, you don't need to get special permisssion from an "insider", and you don't even need a secret password to visit these sites. So much for shrouded in secrecy. Bertram has been barking to have a bone thrown his way from the Ohio retirement systems and it's been sitting in his bowl for 20 years.
Also, about ten years ago, Vindicator golden boy George Tablack, the poster child for retire/rehire, retired under OPERS after he was County Auditor and was subsequently hired by Mahoning County as County Administrator at a much higher salary than when he left County government. Betram and the Vindicator political writers weren't the least bit critical of this retire/rehire. In fact, this retire/rehire story apparently wasn't even worth the ink to print. Not a mention. Not a peep. Bertram was probably intimidated by George's pompous demeanor and didn't want to get on his bad side by reporting what should have been a double dipper of a story.
January 30, 2013 at 12:57 a.m. permalink suggest removal
Public pensions a travesty
The rush to retire is not now as Bertram states. The rush ended January 1, 2013 with the guaranteed 3% COLA's for life.
He makes it sound like using a government vehicle to travel in is a luxury. It really isn't and it actually saves local governments thousands of dollars a year as opposed to reimbursing employees the IRS approved rate of $0.565 per mile driven using their personal vehicle. He throws around the words "plush" and "exotic" as if government employees are staying two weeks at five star hotels on the French Riviera or Waikiki Beach when more often than not, it's one overnight stay at a Red Roof Inn or Microtel on the outskirts of Columbus.
He talks about government employees making $100,000 a year (with the added comment that there are many more of those than you may think). A good journalist would have published the list of who these six figure employees are in the tri-county area (not including YSU as they are in a different league) since he is claiming to know there are many. Or is it just another unsubstantiated hunch that he has. My bet is the latter.
The rants of the multiplication factors of 10%, then 20%, then 30% are pointless mumbo jumbo that could have been written by an average 8th grader.
Retire/rehire is an entirely legally thing to do. With a shrinking tax base and state governement balancing it's budget on the backs of local government, retire/rehire is now a necessity for many political subdivisions and school districts as you can hire the same person back for half of what they were making and on a part-time basis thus not requiring that health care be provided for that employee saving even more money.
Bertram and others may not like that (and I detect some jealousy), but as a business move, ten out of ten financial analysts would tell you it's a no brainer, a fiscally prudent move to make.
However, for a retire/rehire to come back full time, with benefits and at the same rate of pay as they had at retirement, is a piggish move that should be disallowed as all of the financial gains are in the favor of the retiree, not the local government.
January 28, 2013 at 4:05 a.m. permalink suggest removal
Mooney's McWilson decommits from Nebraska
Probably true. Pelini has to learn to keep his emotions more in check (if that is even possible) or he won't be able to recruit top talent. His Bobby Knight-like outbursts don't work in 2013.
January 28, 2013 at 2:23 a.m. permalink suggest removal