Tribalism

One way of looking at how STRS operates is through the lens of tribalism. There are essentially two camps of workers who rely on STRS for their livelihood: 1) those who contributed to the system ( members) and 2) those who did not. Strangely, in the world of STRS, those who did not are much better off than those who did. Let’s call them the “contributors“ and the “non-contributors”.

STRS uses a different set of rules and norms for the non-contributors. Their salaries, bonuses and working conditions are compared to “averages” in private and public corporations. We are told that in order to get the “best“ people, STRS must be competitive; if board members object, they are not being good fiduciaries, and can be personally sued.

What is the reference group used by STRS to determine if the contributors are being treated fairly? There isn’t any. STRS cares not one whit what happens to Ohio’s educators and spends almost no time looking at equity.

If STRS operated as a normal public retirement system, what would be its reference group (or groups) when looking at equity for the contributors? It would be BOTH the 13 or so other public teacher retirement systems without social security, and the four other public retirement systems in Ohio. We know what the findings would be… STRS provides the worst benefit structure, and has the worst outcomes in regard to a diminishing replacement rate as compared to both reference groups. Although not perfect, the norm is to provide a tiered benefit structure, keeping in place the promises made to retirees at the time of retirement.

Where is the STRS Executive Director in all of this? He tells us where he stands at every town hall meeting.

What does this have to do with tribalism? In the culture of STRS, the highest paid non-contributors actively work in secret against the contributors. Behind the scenes slanted information is fed to legislators, the media and politicians. This is evidenced by the anonymous letter, the firing of Wade Steen, the court case against Wade and Rudy and the AG‘s office supporting the non-contributors. The non-contributors prosper when the system puts contributors last. This is a nasty game that affects every aspect of our lives.

What a messed up system!

Trina Kay Prufer is a retired Ohio teacher. She regularly attends STRS Ohio Retirement Board meetings and speaks during Public Participation. She is an All-Star Contributor to the Ohio STRS Member Only Forum.

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ORTA’s Pension Defense Fund is assisting both Wade Steen and Dr. Rudy Fichtenbaum with the attacks by Governor DeWine and Attorney General Yost. As you might imagine, the cost to defend a person from attack by the two most powerful people in the state is tremendous. Please make a donation to the Pension Defense Fund.