Reader says we simply cant afford the current Village compensation/benefit structure
2012 Census data shows that state and local workers cost employers over 50% more (in dollar terms) per hour than non-union private sector workers and almost 8% more than private sector union employees. Further, state and local workers’ “retirement expenses” cost employers over 300% more than non-union private sector employees and almost 26% more than private sector union employees.
https://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0655.pdf
A Ridgewood employee, who retires at 55 today is expected to live at least 26 years after retirement. Thus, if this employee receives a $100K annual pension, the retiree can be expected to receive $2.6mm in pension payments, excluding any pension benefits received by his or her spouse beyond his or her death. This is more than 90% of Americans will earn in their entire working lives. In fact, many of Ridgewood’s police officers are among the 5% of highest wage Earnes in the US. One does not have to perform these jobs to know that there is something wrong with this.
https://www.census.gov/compendia/statab/2012/tables/12s0105.pdf
Nor does One does not have to have performed a job to understand that when the average Ridgewood police or fire officer receives dramatically more than their peers in NJ and that more than a few of them receive 100% more than the average, they are over-paid.
More importantly, we can’t afford the current compensation/benefit structure for our police and fire contracts. The idea of increasing the number of employees under the current contracts is ludicrous.
There are a number of variables that contribute to whether a pension fund is fully funded or under-funded. The contributions are only one element and the meager contributions by employees is not compelling. A more important variable is the performance of the investments in the fund, which have underperformed for some time, creating a massively greater under-funded condition than you suggest.
yes the police and fire dept are over paid in the end.
No they’re not in the end !
Cry all ya want #1……it’s not gonna change!!
Lawyers are grossly over paid to keep criminals out of jail. so why can’t the cops . make fair wage to put the criminals in jail what the heck is wrong with that. Fair to the cops that is, there are people who would have the cops and fireman working for coolley wages so they could have increased control over them.
This is one of the most ignorant comments I have seen on this blog recently.
The town will go bankrupt is we don’t get those expenses under control. They are absolutely overpaid, and we have too many “chiefs”. Cut down on the layers of management.
If the towns are going to go bankrupt in the future it will be over the school budget not public safety
Police in the small towns of Bergen county are vastly overpaid,#4 you strike me asd a complete idiot by your statement.
Wait a minute…of the 300+ employee’s of the Village, how many would qualify for a pension of 100 K annually ? 2 ? 3 ?
This is a reach. Remember, there are more who make a lot less. But the older, more dedicated are the targets here.
This thread originated from a discussion about police & fire (James does a poor job of clarifying when he re-posts a comment). So, we are not talking about all 180 (not 300) village employees. Nonetheless, no village employee should receive a $100K+ pension!
9, basically all of the police force would qualify for that kind of pension. The Record actually did an in depth study of police salaries about 5 yrs ago. They did a focus in a Ridgewood cop who retired in his mid 40s who was getting 100k plus for the rest of his life. Think about it. If he lives to 85, he’d be paid probably 4.5-5m in pension! Insane. How much would YOU have to save to get that kind of income in retirement?
Thed
Thats false information a cop making 100,000 dollars a year at retirement would retire on 65,000 dollars a year. The pension was modified so a cop hired later would retire on 60% or 60,000 of the same 100,000 dollars.
Cops make more than 100k at retirement. Most in Ridgewood are 120k-130k because of promotions etc
I believe my info is correct.
Thed
Thats still is not a 100000 a year pension, another bs story that was being passed about was cops can pad their pension by working ot THAT is FALSE in nj the pension pay is figured on base credible salary only. I searched the record and the archives as best I could and to the best of my knowledge no ridgewood Ptl. in his mid 40’s retired on 100000 dollars a year to get a pension like that he would have started the job at 18 done 30 years and had a base salary of 170000 a year something is wrong with the information.
yes we had cops go under 50. and yes the avg cop make over 100’grand after his or her step’s. and the fire dept is right behind them. the police, fire, and b o e is taking all the money in town. and yet we are been cutting workers in all dept,s and that has been hurting services all around. but we still have a paid fire dept, talk about a set of balls. the way we are going in 5years what are we going to have in town police and fire and b o e.and the rest of the town will go to shit.
Show me a patrolman who retired on a pension a 100000 grand or more a top ptl. makes about 120 he can’t make a pension of 100000 any ptl. who went in his mid 40’s in the last 5 yearsmade about 65000 before taxes. If your one of the people who got laid off That really sucks cause it’s happened to me, but don’t blame it on the cops look at the budget and see where all the money went. The BOE. The cops took furlough days to keep their guys from gettin laid off. I don’t know about the firemen
Ridgewood has cops, who will be making $175 – 200K when they retire. I believe there are currently 5-6 retired police and fire officers from Ridgewood getting pensions over $100K, including our former Mayor.
I don’t know about 2012, but in 2011, Ridgewood Police and Fire reported the following compensation…
Fire Dept had 19 employees at over $120K, including 5 over $140K and one over $160K.
Police Dept had 30 employees at over $120K, including 8 over $140K and 5 over $160K.
This is outrageous!
it’s time for a north bergen fire dept. that would save big money for all towns. every town will not need to spend 700’grand to over a mill for a fire truck. this will work . and we need to look at this.
That was discussed on another thread it’s not as easy as it looks,In the northwest bergen area ridgewood has the only paid fire company why would any town with voluteers want to all of a sudden start paying the firemen salarys. Years back ridgewood and glen rock tried to share a ladder truck but the spec needed for the two towns were different so that didn’t work, then there was the issue of where to store the truck. also the surrounding towns to ridgewood don’t have the call volume ridgewood does because for the most part volunteer firemen don’t respond on ambulance calls uless it’s a bad accident. So why would the surrounding towns enter into an agreement with rwd and end up supplementing it’s manpower of operations budget.?
Those figures are pumped up by overtime no doubt, due to non hiring the fd overtime was enormus. The police figures include money paid to the officers but reimbursed by contractors to the town as well as overtime mandated by manpower shortage, 4th of july downtown for the holidays. The cost of the memorial day run is paid for by the run sponsor.
If you are referring to the 2011 compensation data above, you are incorrect. These numbers do not include overtime or contractor compensation. When these are added in, the totals jump dramatically. This is not due to understaffing. These contracts have become bloated by compounded excessive increases year after year.
People like you need to stop trying rationalize the situation, wake up and acknowledge that these employees are over-paid by any measure. I respect these employees and think that they should be fairly compensated. But, this situation needs to be addressed before our pension obligations irretreivably explode over the next few years.
yea what about all the dam over time for u bums. come on this is a joke. I pay big taxes for u bums to make this. at least the real workers of the town do what i need at an every day to keep this town nice. if my home burns screw it, i have state farm, and for the police I know how to fight. it’s funny that gun’s and amo are selling like hot cakes. well.
sounds like a drunken rant
No rationale needed. They earned the money there is no evidence of foul play so why is even grounds for discussion. If someone is getting a no show job then blow the roof off the place and indict where needed. Otherwise shut up and pay.