36 Comments - 47th Ward - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:39 pm: ===But the CTU has to do its part as well.=== Somebody needs to remind Sharkey and CTU that the state budget is today’s fight. CTU needs to pick a side and I’d suggest they ought to be on the same side as CPS and the Mayor. There will come a time, soon, when CPS has to bite the bullet, and when that day comes, it’ll need more than skin in the game, we’re talking about a whole limb. But until that day gets here, CTU needs to help get a state budget passed so its members can go back to work in August. - Ron Burgundy - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:41 pm: It’s almost as if the CTU thinks our public education system was established for their benefit. A position that amounts to “go get us our money” is not constructive. - MiMi - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:46 pm: If Rahm and CTU can’t put their difference aside and pull from the same side of the rope on state funding issues, then all hope is lost for CPS in Springfield. As a city taxpayer with children enrolled in CPS, I am ashamed of both sides. - Obamas Puppy - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:47 pm: Pension Pickup is just a pay cut. How many times can we talk about how paying teachers by “picking up” their pension costs actually costs less than just providing a raise? - Robert the 1st - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:49 pm: =it’s crazy to hold the children in the entire state of IL hostage= I’m still laughing out loud at that one considering the source. - From the 'Dale to HP - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:52 pm: ===Somebody needs to remind Sharkey and CTU that the state budget is today’s fight. CTU needs to pick a side and I’d suggest they ought to be on the same side as CPS and the Mayor.=== CPS and the Mayor needs to pick a side too then. They’re fighting the state and CTU at the same time also. - Ghost - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:52 pm: CTU memebers pay taxes and fees. if thise increase they will be oaying along with everyone else. this idea that they are not kicking in isnincorrect. they are taxpayers, not a dehumanized gro that has no connection to living expenses and costs. when yoy ask them to kick in by just themselves that is making them pay the thieves who robbed them. its like enron demanding the empliyees pay back the money management stole. the theft here benefited the entire city and in some tespects the state as well. so everyone, ctu memebers included, should share in covering the added expense now do. the fairest solution is neutral tax and fee incrases born by all, including ctu members - PMcP - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 12:58 pm: Real tough to have a conversation on solutions when words like “theft” and “lies” are standard responses. Real simple solution: Everyone pays more (that’s teachers and taxpayers) so no one pays all, pretty straight-forward and the most equitable way to accomplish any task… It’s not rocket science. - qualified someone nobody sent - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:00 pm: CTU is only responsible to its members. CPS cannot pay for pension pick ups anymore. School Districts outside of Chicago can’t afford pensions pick ups either. The answer here seems obvious to me. Employees need to pay for their entire pension contribution whatever the percentage may be. All school boards need to protect their taxpayers from this exploding cost. Palatines’ school board just settled for a TEN YEAR contract! No concessions from the union and 4% annual raises. WHY? Taxpayers are mostly clueless when it comes to these future costs. Local politicians in Palatine seem clueless too. Don’t forget all these pensions once received are EXEMPT from state income taxes, as is the contributed amount. NEGOIATE out the pick ups or get the State to make them illegal going forward. I’m 100% pro union, however, these “gifts” to middle class workers paid for by every property tax payer regardless of their particular economic situations HAS TO STOP! - AC - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:06 pm: ==Don’t forget all these pensions once received are EXEMPT from state income taxes, as is the contributed amount== All pension income, along with 401k type plans are not taxable in Illinois, for now at least. - Big Joe - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:06 pm: In suburban and downstate districts, I believe that when a district needs money they try to pass a referendum. Can’t CPS and the city do the same? - PublicServant - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:13 pm: ===A position that amounts to “go get us our money” is not constructive.=== About as unconstructive as “Let me destroy unions”, or our most vulnerable citizens can take a hike. - Just Me - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:22 pm: Starkey: “HEY! You’re not allowed to shut down the school system! Only we are!!!” - REE - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:23 pm: I am a staunch support of CTU, and will stand behind them no matter what occurs. However, I think it is reasonable for them to pay at least some portion of their pension, maybe half. In return, the city could provide them with 2.5-4% annual raises over an agreed upon period of time. CTU will eventually have to give up something, because we simply don’t have the funds for schools and a lot of Chicago’s residents won’t support additional property taxes. In the end, the Rahm and the city of Chicago must be fair. The City caused the financial problems facing the schools, the teachers and support staff did not. - TD - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:30 pm: Salvaging CPS and making it a place with reasonable class sizes and teacher pay is certainly a group effort that should include some state support, increased taxes in Chicago, an understanding by CTU that they can’t get everything they want, and vocalization by CPS parents to the city and state politicians. However (and I’ll keep repeating this), CPS teachers have already forgone a step/lane raise this past year and increased class sizes around 30/class. They still pay hundreds/thousands of their own money on supplies and work 60 hour weeks. A starting teacher with a master’s degree is on tier II pension (which may be less than social security) and only makes about $50K. Forcing a pension pick up that amounts to an additional 7% pay cut is unfair. Teachers i know of are already considering going to the suburbs or other states that have smaller class sizes and better pay prospects. More divide and conquer strategy so the financial and private orgs can raid city and state coffers and pit the teachers/unions against their fellow taxpayers. - TinyDancer(FKA Sue) - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:38 pm: This is all about collective bargaining. The governor’s got union’s in his crosshairs. Objective: destroy collective bargaining, at all costs - he will risk decimating CPS and the city of Chicago in order to crush the union. - Robert the 1st - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:41 pm: This is actually all about math. CTU members should contribute to their very generous and early retirement. - RNUG - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:45 pm: Yes, I agree that CTU should have some skin in the game. But this is a double-edged sword. If you take away the CPS pickup on the employee pension payment (which would be legal), and give raises instead, the long term math will work against you. Increasing salary actually increases the required employer contribution and creates additional liability compared to no raise and continuing the pickup. You could save some money for one to two years, but after that it would start to cost. For CPS, it’s either pay more now by continuing the pickup, or pays lots more later on the higher salaries. For the teachers, it will also be pay more now because once the future raises exceed the pickup level, the extra income will be taxable at both the State and Federal level. But employees will also get more later since the higher salaries will result in higher starting pensions for the AAI to compound. There are no easy answers, just a choice between bad and worse. Which is bad and which is worse depends on how well you understand the rules and math. - nixit - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:46 pm: ==Pension Pickup is just a pay cut. How many times can we talk about how paying teachers by “picking up” their pension costs actually costs less than just providing a raise?== Some CPS compensation examples since the pickup was enacted in 1981: 1983: 5% COLA raise + 7-9% step increase + 2.5% bonus + 7% pension pick-up 1985: 6% COLA raise + 8-10% step increase + 7% pension pick-up 1990: 7% COLA raise + 4-5% step raise + 7% pension pick-up 1992: 7% COLA raise + 4-5% step raise + 7% pension pick-up So where’s the “just a raise”? - View from the Cheap Seats - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:57 pm: keep failing half the city’s kids then ask for more money, more pension increases, etc. Unreal. - LivCo - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 1:57 pm: As RNUG notes, pension pickup is in exchange for salary, per state law. Almost 2/3rds of IL school districts have it somewhere. And it’s paltry compared to the rest of the CPS budget. ~$140 million out of ~$5.6 billion. The real costs are pension debt service (tied to non-contributions), charter schools, and debt service. Those are each ~$700 million. So $2.1 billion compared to $140 million… - Enviro - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 2:08 pm: CPS picked up the teachers’ pension payment in place of a pay increase. But then CPS took pension holidays and did not pay the employer’s share. Did CPS ever pay the employer’s and the teachers share of pension payments? - Enviro - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 2:11 pm: Did CPS ever actually pay the employer’s and the teachers’ share of pension payments in the same year? - TinyDancer(FKA Sue) - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 2:27 pm: =This is actually all about math. CTU members should contribute to their very generous and early retirement.= Pension pick-up was designed to be compensation In lieu of a raise, so If they want to eliminate pension pick-up, then they need to restore the raise. The lengthened the school day, lengthened the school year, increased class size, and burdened teachers with tons of unnecessary paperwork, but they want them to take a pay cut? Step and lane increases are compensation for experience and continuing education - masters degree, Phd, professional development, etc. You get what you pay for. - TinyDancer(FKA Sue) - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 2:32 pm: Rauner-speak decoded: https://preaprez.wordpress.com/2016/06/02/lost-in-translation-part-deux/ - Harpo - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 2:34 pm: I wish instead of CPS spending an average of $14,000 a year for my kids education that they would give me $5,000 voucher so I could send my kids to a private school. As far as I am concerned my kids are being held hostage because my choice of where I send my kids to school is limited to CPS. - Chicago Schooler - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 2:44 pm: No other City union’s members contribute a mere 2% to their pensions, with the employer contributing 16%. Mayor Emanuel has repeatedly offered to “put skin in the game” by supporting restoration of the old pension levy (assuming Springfield allows) but only if the State and CTU are part of the solution. And the contract deal that Karen Lewis and Jesse Sharkey agreed to earlier this year phased out of the pension pick up while still giving a healthy raise to teachers. Not sure how much more they think they can squeeze out of a bankrupt system. - Harry - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 3:01 pm: As long as CPS and CTU can’t get together, Rauner can just sit back and laugh. - JS Mill - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 3:33 pm: =supporting restoration of the old pension levy= That would be a good start. - Sue - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 3:42 pm: most people find it incomprehensible that the employer pays the employees hate of a retirement contribution. Sure it was bargained for but things change and — it happens. The legislature could remedy this dispute by amending the pension code to prohibit the Employer Pickup statewide. If a school district has spare change they can increase salaries to compensate but most are having their own issues. Of course in Illnois where the unions control the legislature don’t count on this happening but again- Springfiled could and should fix the CPS pickup dispute by itslf - JS Mill - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 3:46 pm: =most people find it incomprehensible that the employer pays the employees hate of a retirement contribution.= Most? So you speak for most now? I doubt it. YOU find it incomprehensible. = Of course in Illnois where the unions control the legislature= Dog whistle. If that statement was remotely true outcomes fo rthe past five yeras would be vastly different. - Thanks - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 4:23 pm: From Rich in 2012: “This is not true… Teachers are supposed to pay almost 9.5 percent of paychecks into their own retirement accounts. But two-thirds of all public school teachers in the state don’t contribute anywhere near, and many contribute nothing at all, according to a report set for release Thursday by the Illinois Policy Institute, a government watchdog. * The Teachers Retirement System addressed this canard last year…” https://capitolfax.com/wp-mobile.php?p=15708&more=1 - Sue - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 5:31 pm: Call it what you want but the Pick Up costs the School districts the share of employee contributions. If it’s additional compensation then the districts seemingly are involved in a massive tax fraud because the pick up escapes taxation - Anonymous - Thursday, Jun 2, 16 @ 8:01 pm: Are employer matches to 401k contributions taxed? - Tone - Friday, Jun 3, 16 @ 12:39 am: CTU is a nightmare for Chicago and its citizens. Bust it. - Formerly Known As... - Friday, Jun 3, 16 @ 3:36 am: The finger pointing continues. No compromise and no cooperation yet. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.