California Proposes to Curtail Workers' Benefits

But since it's California, a ``democrat`` state, be sure to hear the total silence of the MSM and protesters.

California Proposes to Curtail Workers' Benefits

California Gov. Jerry Brown on Thursday unveiled what would be one of the nation's widest-reaching pension overhauls, a proposal that would raise the retirement age and shift more investing responsibilities to public workers.

The 12-point plan includes meshing a 401(k)-style component into newly hired workers' retirement plans, raising the age at which some future employees retire to 67 from 55 now and boosting pension contributions for current workers. Labor groups immediately expressed disapproval.

From 55 to 67 is quite a big big big step... Hell in Europe, people screamed over an increase of 2 years (from 60 to 62) of work to get your pension... California is going for 12 years increase?

You bet it's not only California that's gonna do that. It's all the western world.

reply to post by Vitchilo


With all the protests going on and the Marxists so busy spreading their anti-capitalist gospel, things like this tend to get lost in the mix.

The problem is quite simply the difference between holding the line and pulling the line back in once it has been payed out. 'Nanny State' systems that basically support a large portion of their population through government hand-outs, subsidies and benefit programs suffer worse when economies get thin. It's easier for a nation of people who are more self-reliant to weather the storm than one that is dependent on the state breast for feeding.

In a nutshell, once a nation/state has offered up these programs, reeling them back in during tough times makes a bad situation worse than if there had been no programs to have to cut. People who become dependent don't do well when they suddenly find themselves facing the prospect of a cold turkey cut-off. Similar to substance addictions, the withdrawal symptoms can be more devastating than the situation itself... such as we are seeing in countries like Greece.

Now it's California's turn... and though, perhaps, not to the degree of some foreign nations, those experiencing the withdrawal will undoubtedly be unhappy.

reply to post by Vitchilo


As long as this stays in place, I'll be most compliant with Jerry Clown Brown. Hell an ounce and only an infraction? Thank you Governator.

reply to post by Vitchilo

You have a democrat president.That hasnt stopped the protesters supporting OWS. Why is this partisan anyway?

reply to post by Vitchilo


Do you expect any different? who say is not austerity going on in the US just like in Greece, the reason we don't get to hear more about this is because the federal government is leaving the dirty work to the states to do it

Incredible, I guess we will be reversing to pre civil right movement era when workers fought so hard to get what they have been enjoying now.

Another win for our corporate dictatorship.

And like everything I wonder what other hidden bills will be added to erode workers rights also.

people are not paying enough attention, to what is going in this nation, is going to get worst a lot worst.

Only when is "words of cutting Medicare, SS or pensions" people complain well is many other ways to get at the working class that will do just the same.

Then many still wonder why we have a OWS movement

Originally posted by theovermensch
reply to post by Vitchilo

 

You have a democrat president.That hasnt stopped the protesters supporting OWS. Why is this partisan anyway?

He is referring back to the national spotlight that was shone on Wisconsin for similar actions. Wisconsin was beaten constantly for weeks and drew national attention and massive protesting across the country.

Then Massachusetts did the same thing and got no attention.

The pattern would suggest Californias action will receive little to no attention.

The difference in the three states is that Wisconsin in an (R) state.

strange also is the overtime paid by California last year.

it seems their furlough without pay resulted in extreme overtime pay and cost the state more than if they had regular time workers

looks like another failed agenda ....

Jean Keller earned $269,810 last year working as a nurse at a men’s prison on California’s central coast by tripling her regular pay with overtime hours.

Keller got more overtime in 2010 than any other state employee. In all, California’s public workers collected $1.7 billion of extra pay last year, more than half of it in overtime, state payroll data show. The rest was for unused vacation and union-negotiated benefits such as clothing allowances, physical-fitness incentives and special compensation in recognition of a “complex work load.”

“It’s outrageous,” said 29-year-old Gilbert Ramirez, one of about 30,000 teachers fired in California since 2007 because of budget cuts. “It boils my blood that I’m out of work and they claim they don’t have enough money to pay me.”

California paid the additional wages — enough to fund the average salaries of about 25,000 teachers — as it faced a $19 billion deficit and cut school spending and services for poor children and the elderly. The state may have to trim the academic year by seven days and eliminate some student busing if revenue shortfalls persist.

The extra compensation underscores a broader trend in California, where government workers are paid more than in other states for similar duties. Among them: city managers whose pay is higher than the governor’s, prison doctors who make more than counterparts in other states and Los Angeles firefighters who collect twice the national mean.

investmentwatchblog.com...

www.bloomberg.com...

Union-negotiated “pay differentials,” requirements that workers take monthly furloughs and staff cuts that heaped extra work onto remaining employees combined to inflate overtime and other non-salaried pay, the data show. So did inefficiencies in management of state departments, said Dan Pellissier, a deputy cabinet secretary under former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere

He is referring back to the national spotlight that was shone on Wisconsin for similar actions. Wisconsin was beaten constantly for weeks and drew national attention and massive protesting across the country.

Then Massachusetts did the same thing and got no attention.

EXACTLY.

Massachussetts thread... with 3 replies.
Ridiculous if you compare it to the dozens of threads on Wisconsin and the thousands of replies on there.

reply to post by thisguyrighthere


I remember Wisconsin.But yeah,I didnt hear much about Massachusetts.So its the liberal bias thing. Mainstream media is pretty bad over there.Its funny how democrats scream ''Fox lies" when there is only one Fox news countering the ABC,NBC,MSNBC,CNN....They could always watch Jim Lehrer on PBS.