I’m not trashing retirement plans in general. But some are more lucrative than others. That is fine when the company, or state, or whatever entity can continue to pay for it. BUT, when they ask the taxpayers to pay more taxes to cover it (or they ask for a “bailout from the taxpayers), it becomes a problem. I am simply saying there never seems to be any discussion of making adjustments to retirement benefits, just raising taxes to pay for them.
New York State pensions rates are based on your highest three consecutive years' earnings. They also have several different retirement options you can choose from when you retire, as to how you want to receive your money. I chose the reduced pension option, so that if I die within 15 years of my retirement (I've got five down so far), whatever is left in my pension fund, will be equally divided between my two sons. Since longevity doesn't run in my family (I'm 61, my father died at 72, my mother at 69, my brother at 51), I thought this option was the best so that the state wouldn't get all the money I had mandatorily "donated" each payday. I figured it was better to take a smaller pension check each month, than let the state have what was left if I ended up dying within that 15 years.