75 Comments - PolPal56 - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:38 am: I could have made more in the private sector, too. So could most State employees, when the stats are adjusted for level of education. - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:41 am: IIRC, she is getting paid $250K as a contractor, which means she pays for health insurance, her taxes, her own expenses, etc. Feel free to correct me if I am off base. - training - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:41 am: his agenda is to put millions in his and his friends pocket by crushing wages throughout Illinois. battle of the classes. haves and have nots. never enough for people like him…never - Norseman - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:42 am: How do you defend the indefensible? You throw out a B.S. line and walk really fast. - PolPal56 - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:45 am: According to a 2013 U of I study, “after controlling for education and other demographic factors… [pubic employees] make 13.5% less that workers in the private sector with comparable education.” - Thunder Fred - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:45 am: Pure example of style over substance. You could tell the rest of the media is embarrassed by that guy’s act. Was there any information in that story less than a month old? This was a reporter using the governor as a prop so he could showcase himself. Pathetic. - Ray del Camino - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:48 am: So public employees make 30 percent more than in other states. I’m going to fix that overpayment problem by paying my staff double what the previous guy paid his. Got it. - Wordslinger - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:50 am: Gee, don’t you wish you were a “superstar?” Sounds like a great gig. The people of Illinois elected a governor who thinks they — public and private sector — are not worth the money that they are paid. And he’s dedicated to changing that. Give that a think (finally). A governor dedicated to everyone making less money. Careful what you wish for, you just might get it — and hard. - Walter Mitty - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:50 am: Also… It may be just me… But, are there former Quinn folks that were in these positions saying to themselves… “Huh, I should have asked for a raise?” To the post: I view these salaries the same way as the orchestra playing as the Titanic sunk.. How are those optics? I lean center right. I should want to defend these salaries. When your possible supporters don’t agree.. You got problems. - kimocat - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:51 am: “My people deserve big salaries because, you know, they are smart.” Does Rauner have any idea how insulting he comes off to a lot of hard working and under-appreciated public employees? He makes me sick. - Commander Norton - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:52 am: It’s too bad Elliott Davis has to dilute some very valid questions with junk like, “Why are you paying them that much when they haven’t done anything yet?” Um… because that’s usually how hiring or contracting with an employee works? People in these kinds of positions are not going to work on commission or contingency. - Langhorne - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:53 am: 30-50% more than “other states”? What other states, mississippi? Alabama? Or the average of other states? Prove it. We are the fifth largest state, w lowest per capita state employment. But we need to cut state salaries. Watta guy. - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:54 am: How do those social security payments stack up at age 66 to the pension payments at 52 or 55 or 60? - Anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:57 am: Question: would it be legal for Rauner to personally pay the difference between these inflated salaries and the salaries of the previous incumbent? If so, why wouldn’t the governor consider doing this? The amount would be a drop in the bucket compared to his overall wealth, and he would have avoided these silly hits. - Streator Curmudgeon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 11:59 am: BR reminds me of W.C. Fields: “Go away, kid, ya bother me.” - PolPal56 - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:01 pm: As has been said many, many, many, many times, Social Security is a SUPPLEMENT to retirement savings. Illinois State employees ONLY receive a pension, no Social Security. You aren’t comparing the same things. I paid a lot more into my pension fund than you paid into Social Security. Private employees pay 6.2% into SS; I pay 8% into my pension plan, plus an extra .5% to support the AAI. - Soccermom - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:05 pm: Ugh. Soccermom loves reporters. Soccermom used to be a reporter. Soccermom has been criticized by her colleagues in politics for “being too close to the press.” (Getting the hell out of the third person here…) So generally, I can deal with tough questions and investigative reports. I mean, it’s their job to ask the questions and it’s my job to have good answers. This is the business we have chosen, and all that. But dear lord, those KTVI jerks still make my hands shake with fury. Ambushes are one thing — deliberately misleading ambushes are something else again. They never let the facts get in their way. They are just bad, lazy reporters. Ugh. ugh. ugh. - Arthur Andersen - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:09 pm: 1) This reporter is a doofus who got called out by his peers. 2) He probably already had the story done and anything from Rauner was frosting on the cake. 3) Quinn hired young staff and was a skinflint. Rauner is hiring more seasoned people and is paying them more. Who is to say that they are “overpaid?” Maybe PQ was underpaying. - Reality Check - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:11 pm: “they never let the facts get in their way” — except these are the facts. King Rauner is blasting average state employees on one hand and handing out huge salaries to top advisers on the other. - Langhorne - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:11 pm: Maybe he could term limit state employment. 6 years and out. Or make all state employees interns. - Soccermom - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:12 pm: AA — we don’t normally agree on much, but I can attest that PQ has a long history of underpaying his best staff. That’s one reason why his turnover was so high. - Soccermom - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:15 pm: RC — You are preaching to the choir here. Rauner is a hypocrite who is paying a handful of well-connected people huge salaries while insulting the many hard-working employees who keep the State running. (On the other hand, “don’t pay them until they show what they can do” is just a ridiculous statement.) I’m just saying that KTVI’s political coverage tends to make Joan Callamezzo look like Walter Cronkite… - Andy S. - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:16 pm: Here is a link to a comprehensive study done in 2010 (I doubt things have changed drastically since then) that examined public vs. private sector compensation, adjusted for education, with and without occupational controls, and with some data broken out by state: http://www.ct.gov/opm/lib/opm/Out_of_Balance.pdf The main takeaways are: 1) Even allowing for more generous pensions and other benefits in the public sector, total compensation is somewhat less in the public sector. 2) Illinois is close to the national average. Based on this study, it is clear that Rauner’s statement that Illinois employees make 30-50% more than in other states, and that Illinois employees make 22% more than in the private sector, is pure bunk. - VanillaMan - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:16 pm: Governors are supposed to be leaders. Rauner isn’t leading here. He is denigrating state employees beyond what has ever been done before, blaming anyone who had any responsibilities before he was sworn in, continues to insult everyone for doing a bad job - then praises his own appointees as superstars who deserve far more in salary. That might work in venture capital businesses, but that isn’t what is done in government. If you want to be a governor, you need to know and care how that works and do a good job. If he wants to do that and then expect everyone to accept his insulting responses to valid questions, then he shouldn’t have ran for office. He is a governor now. He needs to be a good one. - Cassandra - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:21 pm: I don’t think it’s legal in Illinois for the guv to make up the salary difference, but I’m pretty sure I read Mayor Bloomberg used to supplement his aides’ salaries in NYC. The imperial Mayor Bloomberg. He pretty much did what he wanted. Kind of refreshing, really. And not so bad for NYC. - Team Sleep - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:22 pm: Remember - you paid for it! - AC - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:26 pm: I understand the need to pay high salaries to attract skilled people, I just don’t understand the disconnect when it comes to those who aren’t appointed. The implication is that we want the best people at the top, and people who are just average to be civil engineers, correctional officers, highway maintainers and auditors. That said, the reporter makes Rauner seem likable by comparison. - Aldyth - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:27 pm: Let’s see results. With the high salaries, I’m sure these people have world class problem solving skills. Show us the results that will make us understand how they are worth these fabulous salaries. So far, the things the Governor has proposed have come across as union hating rhetoric or have been illegal and declined to be implemented by those in a position to know. Show us results. - PublicServant - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:41 pm: Andy S. Thanks for the link to that study. Very illuminating to those of us that base our opinions on facts, while others don’t let the facts get between them and their dogma. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:46 pm: Just once when Rauner spouts off about how union employees here make X% more than their peers in other states I want a reporter to ask if Rauner believes state employees are overpaid. Sure there’s an implication there, but someone needs to make him come right out & say it. If you’re going to compared IL public employees to some orther group then you have to tell us who you think is fairly compensated, if either. - Honeybear - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:48 pm: I actually don’t mind the large salaries for his inner circle. That’s, to me, is expected. But besides the “superstars” (who by fair standards, I think are) what I find offensive are the “experts” being quietly put into place just below the cabinet level. The folks are barely qualified political hires the same as Quinn. My hope with the Governor had been that he would consistantly hire quality. That has not been the case. THAT is what will have disastrous consequences. Institutional memory is now GONE! From here on out they are making this up as they go. “Fine, a fresh start”, you say. Man you have no idea how bad that can screw things up. Young elites, self isolated by privilege and drunk on new found power are a danger to themselves and others. Proof? One name, Schock. - Newsclown - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:49 pm: Hey… A FOX station does a hit piece on a Republican Pro-Business governor? Unpossible. Bruce’s body language was pretty bad, though: screaming visually: “Is this a homeless guy about to assault me, or what?” And his verbal answers, very poor, he’s not thought about these kinds of confrontations, obviously, or he’d have a better response ready to hand. - 47th Ward - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:52 pm: Elliott Davis acts like a graduate of the William Kelly School of Journalism. - Accountable - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:53 pm: Rauner is making his agencies carry his employees salaries by authorizing IGA’s. Many of his policy and legislative staff that report directly to the Governor are on EPA, DHS, IDOT and many other agencies payroll. Where are the cost savings? - Dirty Red - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:57 pm: He includes himself in the shot, and the story revolves around his questioning? C’mon, man. - sal-says - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 12:57 pm: == He stated that employees of the state of Illinois make 30-50 percent more than state employees in other states. He said that most make 22 percent more than they would in the private sector. == Dear Gov Big Mouth: Show us the numbers. Show us a couple of unbiased studies. PROVE IT. Prove you’re not just runnin’ your mouth again. - Louis G Atsaves - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:01 pm: @47th: “Elliott Davis acts like a graduate of the William Kelly School of Journalism.” Beat me to it. Well done! - IllinoisBoi - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:03 pm: Doesn’t it make you feel all warm and fuzzy when a billionaire says the rest of us make too much money? - Rod - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:14 pm: Fox news is lazy, here is the Beth Purvis salary in 2012 http://990s.foundationcenter.org/990_pdf_archive/364/364141583/364141583_201306_990.pdf see page 7. Is it more than $250,000 a year, in 2012 no it was 249,256 a year. Maybe by last year it got over $250,000 a year, maybe Fox can find that out and confront the Governor again. - Mr Creosote - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:24 pm: King Rauner’s definition of “Shared Sacrifice” : You peons Sacrifice and I’ll Share the windfall with my Toadies. - Fiercely Independent - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:28 pm: — Illinois State employees ONLY receive a pension, no Social Security. — As has been stated here many, many, many times, many State employees do indeed collect Social Security. Teachers do not. - My FiNgErS HuRt - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:35 pm: The Governor has a budget, obviously, and he can choose how to use it. If he wants to hire people with real experience (and not just political pals/cronies) to come and work in the public sector, nonetheless, the grind of Illinois’ government, then so be it. Especially if his staff’s budget comes out to less than Quinn’s. Not the mention, why is Quinn’s name even still relevant or spoken about? Aren’t there real issues that his reporter could talk about like the State’s looming pension crisis? - veritas - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:37 pm: What worries me most? I take the governor at his word. I really think he believes that he is making the tough decisions that will bring economic prosperity to Illinois. He is a zealot and he has determined his path forward. Damn the torpedoes. - cdog - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:42 pm: Mr. Rauner, heads up bud. To declare the virtues and sacrifices of being a public servant, and then to boldly pay this public servant a salary that is many times greater than the public, is indefensible no matter how hard you try. Purvis is making 2150% more than a single person at FPL ($11700). (21:1) Purvis is making 1225% more than a $10/hr person ($20400) Purvis is making 525% more than the median income of an Illinois resident ($47,500) Get off that high horse Mr. Rauner. These types of multiples work no where in the economy except for things that are completely out of line and unstable. Geesh. This is just gross. - Wordslinger - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:51 pm: VMan, strap it down. This very successful and lucky man — very lucky — has dedicated the third act of his life to screwing you out of what’s owed you (pensions) and knocking you back from what you can make to raise your family and advance the ball. This is a man who could have done the Bill and Melinda thing, or the Rocky family thing, He could have chosen to play it out in Monaco, doing no harm to anyone. Instead, this very rich and very successful man has chosen to apply his resources and final days to screwing over strangers for no good reason. I don’t understand that. I never will, thanks to my peeps and my church. - Michelle Flaherty - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 1:54 pm: The Davis ambush of Pat Quinn next to a garbage dumpster is an all-time favorite. It screamed classy interview. - Soccermom - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:02 pm: Michelle, I missed that one. Link? - PolPal56 - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:10 pm: FI, thank you for the correction. I do realize some State employees pay into SS. However, it’s only some of the SERS employees who receive SS. Here is a more accurate statement: Illinois State employees do not receive Social Security, including primary/secondary teachers, university employees (including staff), judges, legislators. Only about 20% of Illinois public employees are eligible to enroll in Social Security. - Skeptic - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:12 pm: “30-50 percent more than state employees in other states” Does that control for the cost of living? For example it’s just a wee bit more expensive to live in Chicago (yes I know Springfield is the capitol, but there are a heckuvalotof State employees there) than, say, Jackson, MS. Or Helena, or Boise, or Montpelier…. - PolPal56 - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:15 pm: edit: Most Illinois State employees do not receive Social Security. - MOD - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:20 pm: [Accountable] makes a good point, a classic trick is to put people who work in the Governor’s office onto the payroll of an agency to make it appear there are cutbacks. This is not uncommon, however there has been a big spike in this type of accounting in the new administration. More agencies than ever are being asked to absorb salaries of Governor’s office staffers while taking cuts themselves. These positions should be counted in this type of analysis. - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:35 pm: PolPal——–If you made $100K on average, you paid $1800 per more than you would have in SS taxes. Thirty year career, $54,000 more in withholding than what would have been for SS. How much would your monthly pension be with 30 years of service at possibly 55 years of age? Any idea how much you would get in SS(when you turn 66?) - Sir Reel - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:36 pm: 2 years ago … ancient history. - Precinct Captain - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:37 pm: Question: What kind of signal does this send? Rauner: “That’s a good question.” LOL. - Aldyth - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:37 pm: Perhaps Governor Rauner can enroll in the Governor Pence School of Answering Interview Questions. - Crispy - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:46 pm: In this case, so what if those Fox St. Louis reporters are hacks? Whatever the motives and however inartfully done, good for Davis for at least “afflicting the comfortable” here, especially since “comforting the afflicted” is apparently the exact opposite of Rauner’s agenda. It’s not much of a hard-hitting ambush, anyway–more like a couple of cheap-shot artists sparring lightly. Now, it would be great if more reporters would directly challenge (with the facts) the gubernatorial bilge about “overpaid” workers unfit to lick the boots of the “superstars.” - Ghost - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 2:47 pm: If government employees are overpaid, then why is rauner saying he has to more then double state salarie to lure private sector workers? Mayhap union salaries arent high compated to the provate sector based on what the gov is saying here. And these are salaries for people without industry experience or institutional knowledge. Imagine what an experienced state worker should be paid…. - Juice - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 3:03 pm: With all of his talk of superstars, I feel like the Governor is the kind of guy who would look at the old Soriano contract and say that it was the right deal. - Decaf Coffee Party - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 3:08 pm: So, if I am hearing correctly, Rauner is saying that most public employees in Illinois are overpaid but the people in charge of Illinois state government need to be paid significantly more than in the past. When I think about that it a) makes my head hurt, and b) paints a pretty vivid picture of the class system he envisions in our state. - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 3:28 pm: With all due respect Juice, Rauner would look South and say, “those contracts we gave Wainwright, Yadi and Holliday look great and did we make an unbelievable move not signing Albert.” - Ghost - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 3:55 pm: Rich fyi the cost the state factorsnin for each emoyee is that their state benefits comes out to something like roughly 40% of your state salary. So her total package is worth something like 350k which puts her well ahead of her prvt sector package - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 4:17 pm: Ghost, I could be wrong, but I don’t think she gets benefits. I believe she is a contractor. - PolPal56 - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 4:43 pm: Anon, I call BS on your numbers. My service credit is 31.75 years. I make significantly less than your $100,000 hypothetical, but I still have contributed $119,000 toward my retirement. You’re saying that if I had been in Social Security I would have paid half of that? Well, then, I’m financing my pension pretty well. Interest to date on my account is $199,000. My total contributions and interest are $318,000. If the State had been funding the pension funds properly and matching all along, my pension fund should be worth $636,000. My pension account will keep accruing interest after I retire, too. It would have been a long time before I’d dip into my principle - if the State had been paying into my pension fund as it should have. But whether the State paid into the fund when it should have or whether if pays me my pension out of pocket as it’s due, I’m still owed my pension. - PJ - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 4:54 pm: The reporter acted like a knob and focused the attention on himself rather than on the story. Comparing PQ’s staff salaries with BR’s counterparts is the only thing in that story that even sniffed at any effort, much less analysis. - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 4:55 pm: Pol, you are not addressing what I brought up. Use any figure you want for a salary. Social security deductions are 6.2% and you were having 8% withheld. So, if you averaged $75K, you would have $4650 withheld for SS in a year and at 8%, it would be $6000, or a difference of $1350 a year. What will your pension pay you monthly for those 31.75 years of service? You get 2.2 credit per year right? My point is you will quickly make back the additional $ they withheld over the 6.2% because your pension will be significantly more than you would ever get from SS. If you started out of college, you could be about 55 and retire. Are you retired? Retiring soon? Figure it up. - Arthur Andersen - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 5:04 pm: anon, you can’t compare SS to a public pension fund. SS redistributes funds to lower income contributors; pensions do not. You can’t make a meaningful analysis by just adding up contributions. - PublicServant - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 5:04 pm: anon, as a small business owner (not sure which type of business), I’m sure you’re familiar with this thing called a contract. I agreed to work for the state under its terms, and I expect to be paid according to the agreed upon terms in place at my retirement. On top of those terms, under which I agreed to retire, the terms in effect at the date of my initial employment plus any benefit increases made during my employment accrued to me upon their enactment. You don’t seem to agree with that arrangement. I respect your opinion. It differs from that of our Supreme Court opinions to date. I believe that they about to amplify their previous opinions in a few weeks. Your opinion and a buck or two might get you a cup of coffee. It’s irrellevant to me, however. - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 5:08 pm: I’m not AA. All I am is asking is to compare what this person will get per month from his state pension versus what he will get if he worked in the private sector and received a monthly social security payment. That’s it. Because his monthly social security payment would likely be about 3 grand a month, when he could retire at 66. I will let Pol tell us what his government pension payment will be each month. - RNUG - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 5:42 pm: - anon - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 5:08 pm: AA’s point that you can’t compare to SS is valid. It redistributes money from high wage earners to low wage earners. You get between 7-% and 80% of the benefit with your first 20% - 30% of your contributions; you get the other about 20% of benefits from the next 70 some % of contributions. - Black Ivy - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 7:15 pm: The proof is in the pudding! Governor Rauner’s leadership team is talented, well-credentialed, and tested. I suspect we will appreciate their value in due time. - Norseman - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 7:46 pm: === The proof is in the pudding! === The pudding hasn’t set yet. - Inquiring minds - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 8:04 pm: Is rauner funding purvis? if not–what agency is funding her???? - Tired - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 9:16 pm: Anon… Social security is not supposed to be a pension; it is a supplement to retirement. The pension for a state employee or teacher is not a supplement; it is the retirement. You and those who attack pensions, despite state employees doing all that was reqiured, are awful. It is an immoral and unconstitutional attack. Illinois does not have a pension problem; it has a debt problem brought on by a failure to honor its obligations. This failure has allowed the whole state to skate for years on low taxes; now the debt can/should be paid , but not by robbing public employees. That is theft; pure and simple. Shame on you. - Michelle Flaherty - Tuesday, Mar 31, 15 @ 9:29 pm: SoccerMom, sorry for the delay: http://fox2now.com/2013/12/16/should-illinois-legislators-take-a-pay-cut/ - Yatzi - Wednesday, Apr 1, 15 @ 6:32 am: In 2004 I was offered $30,000 more than I make today (no raise since 2003) - I said no - a big regret that I did not take it and leave - my support for this state is not worth the price I have paid and continue to pay Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.