Lyda Green did a great job detailing all that was wrong with our old retirement system. She gave lots of reasons why it didn’t work and what would be wrong with the new proposed system. But she gave us nothing to consider in its place. She made no suggestions of what would work.
I agree with Green in that many or most new hires consider only salary and work conditions as their priority. I was about halfway through my career as a state corrections officer before it changed from a job to a career. It was only then that I gave a whole lot more consideration to retirement and a defined benefit pension. With that brass ring firmly in mind, if not actually in hand, I reshaped my goals to meet that end.
I am now retired from corrections and living a reasonable lifestyle based on my financial means. Knowing that that pension was there to guide me was what led me through the next dozen years. I’ve talked with many junior officers, those that have no defined benefit to look forward to. Many of them feel like they have no job security, no assured future to look forward to, nothing to work toward.
So, Lyda Green shouldn’t come here tearing down what was without giving us something to work with, without bringing a solution to the problem. What are her suggestions for a retirement plan that will work?
— John Klapproth
Anchorage
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