I read Christopher Wright’s recent commentary and feel I must set the record straight. Defined benefits are wanted by nearly all public safety officers.
My name is Patrick Messmer, and I started my career in law enforcement 25 years ago. I have seen the defined-contribution plan simply devastate our staffing levels in public safety since 2006. Wright, who described himself as a former stockbroker and now police officer, said that not all public safety officers want a real pension. Well, he is the only one I am aware of who doesn’t.
I testified in front of the House on this issue last year and Christopher Wright also testified. He was the only first responder to like the current shame of a 401(k) system. Our union sends out surveys to our members before every contract, and the lack of a pension is always a concern for our members.
We don’t have union bosses suppressing our members’ views. We have one former stockbroker trying to imply that public safety workers don’t want a real retirement, which is absolutely false. The simple truth is the current Tier 4 401(k) without Social Security is the worst retirement in the U.S. for first responders, period.
— Patrick Messmer
Seward
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