The Oregon state employee., October 01, 1944, Page 20, Image 20

18
Over the Secretary's Desk
Wisconsin Counties Pension Plan
Fixed Income
The Wisconsin State Council of
Groups Suffering
County and Municipal Employees at
its meeting at Oshkosh August 20, en­
dorsed a pension plan to introduce in
the 1945 session of the state legislature
which would provide a retirement sys­
tem for county employees modeled af­
ter the Wisconsin state retirement law
for state employees which was estab­
lished by the 1943 legislature.
The proposed plan provides for an
act whereby counties may participate
by vote of the county board. All coun­
ties would be eligible to participate ex­
cept Milwaukee county, where a re­
tirement law is already in operation.
Principal features embodied in the
legislative proposal are:
Retirement at age 65 with the right
of extension from year to year until the
age of 70; a pension of not less than
$60 per month for 20 years of service,
but not more than $100 a month at the
compulsory retirement age.
Employees with less than 20 years of
service would be eligible for a pension
of $3 per month for each year of serv­
ice; employee contributions of five per­
cent of gross salary; county contribu­
tions necessary to meet obligations un­
der the act; disability and death bene­
fits, and administration by a board of
trustees appointed by the governor.
The council is also asking for an
amendment next year to the municipal
employees’ retirement law providing for
a minimum pension of at least $60 for
20 years or more of service.
A new civil service commission cov­
ering fire and police employees has been
established recently by the city of
Laurel, Mississippi.
Millions of Public Employees and
Pensioners Included
More than 20,000,000 persons, whose
incomes depend on fixed low wages,
pensions or allotments are seeing their
incomes shrink with every rise in the
cost of living, the Office of War In­
formation reports.
For these persons, there has been no
Little Steel adjustment to help them
meet inflated living costs, OWI said.
Higher prices mean that each check
they receive purchases fewer and fewer
of the necessities of life.
Nine million are dependents of men
now serving in the armed forces of the
United States.
Six million are public employees —
teachers, firemen, policemen; nurses in
state and city hospitals; municipal,
county township, state, and federal
workers.
Nearly 2,200,000 are aged persons on
state public assistance rolls.
Another, million are disabled veter­
ans drawing pensions or disability com­
pensation, or the widows and depen­
dent children of veterans.
Retired and disabled firemen, police­
men, state and municipal employees to­
talling 158,000 are receiving pensions
or retirement pay.
Dependent children receiving aid
through federal and state welfare funds
number 739,000.
Fifty-three thousands are blind.
About 700,000 retired workers, wi­
dows and young children receive social
insurance payments under the old age
and survivors insurance program of the
Social Security Board.
More than 400,000 persons are draw-