As annoying as I find your “wolf fucked over teachers” narrative, this overall was a good conversation for me to learn more about the system. I’m not in support of any more cuts and I think the 2% rate would have been a good middle ground but the state budget is in bad shape and I think the new model with half pension and half 401k and higher starting salaries is the right mix to save the system. The bigger issue in the future is going to be the state funding lawsuit that is going to really throw a monkey wrench into the school funding formulas.

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I believe the goal is to prevent people in temporary financial straits from losing their heat in winter?

At least here in pittsburgh they raised the starting salary a lot to make up for reduced pension benefits. They raised the starting salary by 20% from $40k to $48k in 2019. It’s basically a trade off because they weren’t attracting enough new teachers with the model of low starting salary in exchange for better future pensions.

The point is the pension used to be more generous and that was unsustainable in an actuarial basis with the plateauing state population . Since the increase in pension benefits to 2.5% in 2001, the state has gone from a well funded pension program to a deeply indebted system. The 2.5% level was never sustainable and will be a burden on the state for decades and caused voters to hate teachers. Maybe if the state didn’t switch to 2.5% in 2001 we could afford a higher rate like 1.5 or 2 for new teachers but the bottom line is older teachers fucked over newer teachers by draining the system of its reserves.

You’re in the middle that has benefits closer to the pre 2001 numbers. You shouldn’t compare the current benefits to the unreasonable benefits given in 2001. If you were hired after 2011 you are buying into the 2.5% with your salary deductions and your rate otherwise would be 2% which is more in line with the sustainable rates we had before 2001. New teachers in the 2017 and 2011 base plans contribute the same amount 6.25% of salary to the defined benefit pension but the 2017 class gets a multiplier of 1.25 in exchange for a 2.25% state contribution to the 401k. Over 35 years of teaching at an average salary of $70k and an a average growth rate of 7% in a 401k that would be worth $350k. Add in the 2.75% employee contribution and the balance would be around $850k that is their money to do what they want with instead of a fixed pension they can leave it as an inheritance for their children or whatever they want. So they are getting half the pension as you for the same 9% contribution but the 401k is a huge offset to the lost pension and comes with more flexibility.

It’s my opinion that if teachers can’t accept the compromise wolf made, they are being unrealistic and have their heads in the sand over the state budget. Wolf is a moderate and he won the election because voters trusted him to be a prudent manager of the states finances. They can cry all they want about how older teachers got better benefits but today is a different day and we have to make decisions that are good for the states finances in the long run. I think teachers should advocate for removing the masters degree requirement but they won’t do that because it funnels money to the higher education professors who have their own pension to worry about.

http://sers.pa.gov/about-legislation.html

https://www.psers.pa.gov/Active-Members/NewToPSERS/Pages/Class-Election.aspx

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Is misclassifying an employee as an Independent Contractor. And the IRS has been on the warpath against employee misclassification for the last few years.

Whoever reports the employer will get rewarded by the IRS. Everyone will get fucked since the IRS ALWAYS gets their money...unless, of course, you are one of the wealthy elites.

At least the teachers still get a pension. The rest of the states employees hired after Dec. 31st 2019 are not eligible for any pension at all.

I’m still waiting to get mine vested, and the facility I work at is slated to close the end of next month.

I've heard it's roughly 1 gram per kilogram. So imagine eating two or three shot glasses worth of pure THC. It would cost thousands of dollars, and you'd probably choke to death before OD'ing.

Clearly it’s not that good of a job

Ok. Lets focus on how the republicans, PSEA, and wolf all circled around the teachers in the firing squad and fucked over new teachers. My multiplier will be 2.5%; new teachers will get 1.25% (or 1%). They are getting fucked and will get half the pension for the same time. Retirement multipliers per PSERs: https://imgur.com/vMikKQg

Example per PSERS: https://imgur.com/eKaITG9

You mention a 401k, but that is money is a mandatory 4-5%ish of the teachers salary, it is effectively a decrease in present salary. In most districts this was already in place with optional 403b programs.

Don't worry. The vast majority of PSEA members and democrats are wholly unaware of how Wolf fucked over the teachers. They used to be aware of the change from a 2.0 multiplier and 40 years to 2.5 and 30, and who made it happen, but it has all been lost to history.

The starting salaries are so low it's not funny. Teachers can't afford to rent an apartment virtually anywhere in the state.

EDIT: Salaries are public information, available here. A few short years ago, these may have been acceptable, but now they have fallen very far behind.

Yeah despite oil being more this year I think overall I paid less

No. All summer long they has to option to pay the very small bill for heat since heat is not used in the summer. People,should get their priorities straight.

Or someone who knows more than you do

They retire at 75% of their highest paid years. But that could include overtime.

So it could be higher than their salary if they get less overtime as they get older

Governor, yes. General Assembly is split: Senate is R (by 5 seats with 1 vacancy), House is D (by 1 seat).

Context clues.

I’d bet a paycheck to there were plenty of notifications sent before the winter months.

You can freeze in Texas too, even if you pay your bill.

Three strikes - want to step up to the plate again?

Shut up bud

Thanks! My follow up would be how would one get to that point? Can local law and state law enforcement and local and state prosecutors go go after someone for this? If a local cop discovered this violation could they arrest someone for it or would they have to call in the feds? Would the feds bother? I guess the fact that the case being discussed started off with a traffic stop tells me local cops can somehow escalate it (though that wasn’t mmj I believe), but would love a more accurate picture of how that would happen. I know these are a lot of hypotheticals, I’m just trying to figure out what the realistic risk to a gun owner who gets an mmj card and mmj.

>. Wolf signed it into law. All he had to do was veto the very anti-teaching legislation.

the state would struggle to pass a budget if he vetoed the law. Split government control requires compromise.

> authored by the republican general assembly, that would have been the end - and a win for the people who put him in office.

People put their republicans into office also and high government pensions are a big reason republicans keep getting elected in this state

>What’s worse is the PSEA nearly blew Wolf throughout his whole term.

Maybe they knew this was a good compromise

> I should have said NYC school system is 25 years.

This is probably due to supply and demand and a stronger union. If you like it so much go there and pay super high cost of living

> In link you provided none of the non-NYC tiers had a 35 year threshold, like PA.

That’s comparing apples and oranges because the tier 6 minimum age is 63 which would be 40 years for someone who started at 23.

> The assumptions in the PennLive article from PSEA do not match the more realistic assumptions provided by PSERs. Again, it equates to about 1/2 of what I will get. It is also an annuity, so it doesn’t literally have the same value as cash when you die.

It you start teaching at 27 and each full retirement age of 67 you would earn 40 years * 1.25 multiplier times max salary of 90k would be a pension of 45k AND a large 401k of around $500k. You aren’t getting any sympathy from voters with that kind of retirement package. I think you are more stuck in the fact that older teachers got a better deal but that’s sort of irrelevant.

> Teachers w/ a BS in Math, Bio, Chem, Physics will realize in year 2-10 that they can make more money in the private sector,

Most can’t. There isn’t much demand for those basic bachelors degrees unless you went to a top school or go on to get a phd. Software development is really the only career that you can earn more than teachers. Average starting salary for a Carnegie Mellon graduate in chemistry makes 70k and doesn’t get a pension.

I get that older teachers got a sweetheart deal but even new teachers are still getting competitive pay versus most private sector jobs. I think the 2017 law is a good compromise that should be the state in a more stable financial ground which is the main point of the article. I think teachers might get more sympathy if they focus on how draconian the republicans would be and avoid a circle firing squad on democrats that have generally way more supportive overall to education spending.

No way, is it the county maybe? I had no issues at all a few years ago when I needed it one winter, I was approved before the end of the day.

You mentioned it was stories that drew you away. I would call anyway if you haven't yourself. These programs can be a hassle but I would suggest you start throwing darts at the board and see what sticks. Getting a SNAP card will still help you catch up on your utilities.

The Compass website makes this fairly easy, and yes: that change was recent. Within the last year I'd say. When I used it I had to call, it was so easy I still remember the person's name because it stood at that much, it was Lisa. She took a run through all the programs under Compass that I could apply for in basically one go without having to call different organizations and departments myself. By the end of the day I knew the results for about 90% of my applications, got some and didn't get others but it didn't matter because the strain on my total finances was lifted enough.

So there's a positive one for you. If that ends up not being your experience I'm sorry, but do please try.