Hey Occupiers: Over Here!

December 19, 2011

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Do you think you could make it in retirement on $20K/month? That’s how much former OHSU Chief Peter Kohler is getting from the taxpayers of Oregon. You’ve heard about former UO coach Mike Bellotti making approximately a half mil a year and now we find out in this Statesman Journal piece (here) that 60% of the big time payouts of PERS are going to folks in higher ed.
I don’t begrudge anyone getting what they can as long as it’s legal, but 60% of the big time payouts going to former professors? Hey Occupiers, over HERE!

You’ve seen the signs and complaints by the Occupiers that high student loans are one of their major beefs. Well, it seems to me that the Occupiers are missing the boat. Instead of agitating for higher pay for union members as their union pay masters insist they do, if they’re REALLY upset about their unsustainable student loans they might want to take a look at the PERS set up.

Overall, PERS costs are having an effect on the Oregon University System’s budget, just as they are affecting the budgets of state agencies, cities, counties and school districts.
Nearly half or more of this year’s tuition increases at the seven state colleges can be attributed to rising PERS employer rates, Kenton told state lawmakers earlier this year.
During a March hearing, Kenton told legislators that PERS rate increases would require a 4 percent tuition increase to cover the additional costs.

Wow, and that’s just THIS YEAR! That’s where the money’s going, kids.
But it’s not over!

Oregon universities tend to spend a lot more on benefits than their national peers. Typically, institutions of higher learning spend between 28 and 35 percent of payroll on things like health insurance and pensions.“We run in the 45 to 50 percent,” Kenton said. “Every dollar of salary generates about 45 to 50 cents of other costs, largely in retirement and health care.”

Unsustainable spending. The gift that keeps on giving. Hey Occupiers: Over HERE.

Tell ’em where you saw it. Http://www.victoriataft.com