ALBANY — It’s time to make improvements to our public pension system benefits, and we need you to make our voices heard!
Our union recently launched a campaign calling on CSEA members to take immediate action to urge state legislators to fix Tier 6.
Implementing these fixes will ensure all workers can retire with dignity and will remove a huge factor contributing to the staffing crisis faced by many public agencies and municipalities.
Members are urged to call their state legislators at (844) 956-2891 to ask them to support changes to Tier 6.
Time to correct a 10-year mistake
Ten years ago, lawmakers approved Tier 6, weakening worker benefits and increasing their retirement costs.
Now, New York’s public pension system no longer is the incentive it once was to attract workers entering public service.
“There was a time when many public workers came to work knowing that the salary might not pay as well as the private sector, but the pension benefits made up for that,” said CSEA President Mary E. Sullivan. “Now, those benefits have been watered down and these jobs are just not as attractive as they used to be. We need to fix that if we want to stop the staffing problems being faced by state and local government.”
Putting state legislators on notice
Our union recently spotlighted Tier 6’s impact on staffing in budget testimony to State legislative committees.
CSEA Legislative Director Joshua Terry told legislators Tier 6 reforms “must be on the table” if the state is serious about solving recruitment and retention issues. He pointed out the severe reduction in staffing in both state and local governments over the past 10 years, noting that it was especially concerning in the delivery of direct care services and other frontline jobs, where staffing shortages have reached crisis levels.
“When someone can make more money working retail or in the food industry than they can make providing direct care or driving a snowplow, and when there is no positive trade-off on the benefit side of the equation, it’s very hard to recruit and retain workers in the public sector,” Terry said.
Now’s the time to act
With federal funding from the American Rescue Plan that CSEA successfully lobbied for, New York is now in the best fiscal condition we’ve seen in decades. Employers’ pension contribution levels are also going down. If ever there was a time to make improvements to public pensions, it’s now.
Members understand need for changes
Recently, CSEA emailed all Tier 6 members to survey what fixes they’d like to see. More than 6,000 members responded, understanding the need for reforms.
One Tier 6 member is Highway Maintenance Supervisor Michael Roth, who works for the state Department of Transportation in Babylon.
“Our pensions aren’t as valuable as they once were,” Roth said. “The state needs to invest in their workforce if they want to retain quality workers.”
Time to take action
“Our elected state leaders understand pension reforms are needed, but we need them to hear from the workers who are impacted,” Sullivan said. “We all need to call on them to fix Tier 6. I urge all members to call and write their state legislators.”
To email your representatives and download a flyer to share with your co-workers, visit cseany.org/ fixtier6.
— Mark M. Kotzin
