CALPERS as corrupt as Congress

[srellim234]

Anyone who believes that there is a shred of anything decent left in the organization is nuts. Bribery works.

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-fi-c ... ?track=rss

CALPERS should be abandoned for all new hires in California and they should be placed in a standard 401(k) or encouraged to use an IRA, If it's good enough for the private businesses the rest of us are working for it should be good enough for them. NO MORE GUARANTEED PENSIONS FOR PUBLIC EMPLOYEES!

[stebo0728]

Are you kidding me? Florida public workers are going ape-sh*t over having to contribute 3% to their retirement, you think public workers are going to give up their gauranteed pension without a dogmatic fight of the century?!?

I agree with you though.

[bigbadberry3]

Why shouldn't public employees be entitled to something they worked for?

[IBCoupe]

Why should they have to give up something that was bargained for? Why should the State of California get to reneg on its contracts? Screw that. Guaranteed public pensions was in exchange for lower wages years ago. If you want to renegotiate to get rid of them, feel free to pay them more today.

[srellim234]

You two totally missed my post. I said CALPERS should be abandoned for NEW HIRES. Those people did not negotiate anything and haven't worked for anything. THEY HAVEN'T BEEN HIRED YET! Neither one of you addressed the corruption within CALPERS either.

As for wages, given the private sector unemployment in this country there are a ton of us who are both qualified and more than willing to take those jobs at the current rate of pay. Even if it means putting into our own 401(k)s or IRAs. It's a job and it's the same retirement plans we're already used to.Wages for all in the private sector except for those at the very top are declining rapidly. Even if it means putting into our own 401(k)s or IRAs It's a job and they're the same retirement plans we're already used to.

[bigbadberry3]

I don't really get the article, I just was addressing your statement for no more guarantees for public employees.

[IBCoupe]

I was riding on Berry's coattails. To be honest, I couldn't bring myself to comprehend what CALPERS stood for, let alone its alleged corruption.

[srellim234]

California Public Employees Retirement - With executives facing criminal prosecution for corruption and all their mismanagement of funds. Leaving the taxpayers to pay the shortfall of pension funding while the executives walked away with huge compensation packages and bonuses.

In this case they filed a lawsuit against CVS for fraud in a whistleblower suit in which CVS ripped off tens of millions of dollars from CALPERS. Including allegations that key bribes were paid to CALPERS executives. Before the case was settled CALPERS announced that it was no longer going to consider any other companies and decided that it was only going to negotiate with CVS for the next contract. Yes, the same CVS they were in court against for ripping them off.

CVS settles the fraud suit and CALPERS immediately announces they have a new contract with CVS. Leaving other companies wondering how CALPERS can continue dealing with them and how come they weren't allowed to continue bidding on the contract and how much CVS paid off CALPERS execs to get the new contract.

If it were a private union pension fund I wouldn't care so much but the taxpayers have to make up the shortfall of funds and it's costing us billions.

[bigbadberry3]

Once you mention executives walking away with millions I immediately become angry especially if somewhere the word fraud is involved. I don't know if the union members are super happy either (remember they also pay taxes). Mebe?