South Carolina governor threatens state workers’ pensions and health care

[Hannah Bell]

Republican Governor Nikki Haley announced her intention to cut state employee pension and health care benefits in a town hall meeting in Lexington, South Carolina last week. An attack of this nature has been a long time in preparation. Haley’s predecessor, Republican Governor Mark Sanford, proposed on multiple occasions the total elimination of the state’s pension system.

Haley did not outline a specific proposal, but claimed the $14 billion in retirement benefits due to state workers is unfunded. She said that under her plan existing retirees will continue to receive their promised benefits, but for new workers, she declared ominously, “We’re going to have to make some changes.”

“Everybody else is having to sacrifice and cut and, unfortunately, government employees are going to have to be part of that mix,” she claimed...between 2006 and 2008 private sector workers made 9.7 percent more than public sector workers, who were paid an average of $27,000; college educated state workers earned an average of $44,652, 18.8 percent less than their private-sector counterparts.

On taking office, Governor Haley deemed several members of her staff worthy of pay raises. She awarded her chief of staff, Tim Pearson, an annual salary of $125,000, an increase of $27,000 compared to what Sanford paid his chief of staff. Swati Patel, Haley’s top lawyer, will receive a salary of $102,000 a year, an increase of 36 percent over the $75,000 a year that Sanford paid his top lawyer...A rally in opposition to the attack on state workers’ benefits will take place at 1 p.m. this Saturday, March 12, outside the State House in Columbia.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2011/mar2011/scar-m09.shtml