Chicago should focus on raising revenue rather than cutting employee pensions as City Hall and the state legislature mull reforms to dig out of a multi-billion dollar pension crisis, according to a new report released by a coalition of public workers' unions.
The study, dubbed "The Great Chicago Pension Caper: Neighborhood Destabilization in an Age of Austerity," concluded that cutting pension benefits would hit women and African Americans in disproportionate numbers and send negative economic ripples throughout the communities where they live.
It was released by the We Are One Chicago group, which brings together nine labor groups representing nearly 140,000 city workers, ahead of a rally in the state capital of Springfield today.
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The coalition proposed alternative "revenue solutions" that could pump more than $2.4 billion into the city and Chicago Public School coffers every year. They include implementing a graduated city income tax, raising city property taxes, expanding the sales tax to include services as well as good, and closing corporate tax loopholes.
"We actually think the people who do the work in this city should be a priority, and that we can't simply solve every problem on the backs of retirees or the people who do the work," said Chicago Teachers Union Vice President Jesse Sharkey at a news conference Monday. "There needs to be a conversation about revenue."
The group also presented several current and future public sector retirees at the press event, where they told their stories and how the loss of benefits would impact their lives.
Among those who spoke were a policeman who had been shot on the job, a firefighter who had hip replacement surgery that was made necessary by work-related injuries, a widowed school teacher on disability, and a 69-year-old public health nurse who helps support her extended family.
They pointed out that they have made the required contributions to the pension fund, while the city and school system have not made adequate payments to sustain the account.
"We worked hard for our money," said 61-year-old Patricia Boughton, the school teacher. "We paid our 9 percent faithfully. We earned this money, and we should not be penalized because the politicians in this city refused to live up their obligations to their pensioners. I keep saying that I feel we've been robbed, that somebody is stealing from us."
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in an emailed statement after the report was issued, "The resolution to this crisis must provide a secure retirement for them and retirees, while also looking out for taxpayers and homeowners in every neighborhood who struggle to make ends meet."
"We need a balanced approach to solve the biggest financial threat that our city and our school system have ever seen, and look forward to working on these solutions together," he added.
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