Even Public Workers Know Ailing Cities Need to Change Their Benefits Systems

The latest Reason-Rupe poll also delved in further into how the public perceives municipal budget problems and how to fix them. In short, the majority polled don’t want higher taxes or reduced services – not really a surprise. But majorities do want cities to deal with financial problems by reducing benefits for public employees or requiring them to contribute more into their own benefits. A majority of public sector employees – 67 percent – also agree that they need to be paying more into their own benefits. A full 45 percent of public sector employees say their own benefits should be reduced. Obviously not a majority, but that’s a pretty high number.
The majority of those polled – 70 percent – also believe new public sector employees should be shifted over to 401(k)-style savings programs rather than defined-benefit pension programs. Even a majority of public sector employees, 59 percent, want new employees to be shifted away from pensions.

http://reason.com/blog/2013/09/12/even-public-workers-know-ailing-cities-n