Massachusetts is one of the 15 states in which public employees don’t pay into Social Security and don’t collect it. People who contributed to Social Security while working in the private sector then went into the public sector, lose as much as 55 percent of their Social Security benefit if they are also collecting a public pension. |
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In Quincy, from June 2003 through June 2008, the rate for police was 26 percent – 10 out of 39 officers retired on accidental disability. |
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Most private sector employees – about 55 million nationwide – rely on defined contribution retirement plans, in which they are responsible for managing their money and there is no guaranteed benefit, to supplement Social Security. |
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The average state worker pays 9 percent of his or her salary and the state kicks in more than $1 billion per year to pay for about 12 percent of public employee retirement benefits. The remainder is paid for with pension fund returns. |
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The average municipal retiree on the South Shore’s annual pension in 2008 was between $19,000 and $21,500. The average accidental disability retiree on the South Shore’s annual pension in 2009 was about $31,500. |
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Depending on when they were hired, public sector employees in Massachusetts contribute between 5 and 12 percent of their pay into the local or state retirement system. Since 1979, public employees have contributed at least 7 percent plus 2 percent on any earnings over $30,000. Since 1996, they’ve contributed at least 9 percent plus 2 percent on any earnings over $30,000. |
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Public employee pensions in Massachusetts increase by a maximum of 3 percent on the first $12,000 of a retirement allowance each year. That’s $360 per year. |
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About 75 percent of U.S. police, firefighters and EMTs prehypertension or hypertension, according to a 2008 study published in the American Journal of Hypertension. The study attributed the numbers to several factors including the physical and emotional stresses of the job and obesity rates. |
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From June 2003 through June 2008, the rate of accidental disability retirements among State Police was 27 percent, or 90 out of 335 retirements. |
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Statewide in 2008, 12,933 of the 186,700 retired public employees, including city, town and state workers and teachers, received accidental disability benefits. That’s 6.9 percent. |
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