Board of Regents to consider changing pay day
Changing the payroll date to the beginning of the month could produce $10.9 million for mobile computing.
Amy Poppinga
Issue date: 10/15/08 Section: News
"Those people have to decide when it will be in their best interest to retire," said Perry.
The BOR Executive Director said that the affect on retirement is controversial, but "the best I can do is give people facts." He said the SDRS cannot make up any retirement money lost due to IRS regulations and federal employment laws.
This retirement situation has angered several employees.
Roger Olson, who works in the print lab, is within 16 months of retirement after currently being employed by SDSU and the BOR for almost 34 years. He said he decided his retirement date long ago, and so he is disappointed that he might have to change his plans now.
"Someone tells me I can still have that retirement date or I can work longer if I choose to … but if I choose to keep that retirement date then the state is going to take $81 a month away from my wife and I," said Olson.
"I kind of feel like I'm taking one for the team."
Olson said the pay date change will cause his wife and him to lose about $40 a month each in retirement benefits. If he retired before July 2009 to avoid the pay date change, he and his wife would together get about $150 less.
"I kind of feel if the program is so wonderful and so necessary then quite possibly the state should appropriate the money, but not off the back of the career service people," Olson said.
South Dakota Rep. Larry Tidemann of Brookings District 7 attended a recent meeting about the pay date change and agreed with Olson's position.
"I do not want to see anything using the employees' dollars," he said. "I think that is a wrong approach. You don't balance the budget on the employee's back."
Unfortunately, Perry said, there are not many other options. He said the state is already strapped for resources, and students would have to pay an additional $500 each to fund the project. If the BOR were to fund the project in a different way, it would have to cut roughly 400 positions system-wide.
Despite these concerns, Perry said that the benefits of the project should outweigh the costs.
"If we don't do it … what happens? No technology environments? I don't think that's in the best interests … of the students, faculty, universities and even the employers of this state."
The BOR Executive Director said that the affect on retirement is controversial, but "the best I can do is give people facts." He said the SDRS cannot make up any retirement money lost due to IRS regulations and federal employment laws.
This retirement situation has angered several employees.
Roger Olson, who works in the print lab, is within 16 months of retirement after currently being employed by SDSU and the BOR for almost 34 years. He said he decided his retirement date long ago, and so he is disappointed that he might have to change his plans now.
"Someone tells me I can still have that retirement date or I can work longer if I choose to … but if I choose to keep that retirement date then the state is going to take $81 a month away from my wife and I," said Olson.
"I kind of feel like I'm taking one for the team."
Olson said the pay date change will cause his wife and him to lose about $40 a month each in retirement benefits. If he retired before July 2009 to avoid the pay date change, he and his wife would together get about $150 less.
"I kind of feel if the program is so wonderful and so necessary then quite possibly the state should appropriate the money, but not off the back of the career service people," Olson said.
South Dakota Rep. Larry Tidemann of Brookings District 7 attended a recent meeting about the pay date change and agreed with Olson's position.
"I do not want to see anything using the employees' dollars," he said. "I think that is a wrong approach. You don't balance the budget on the employee's back."
Unfortunately, Perry said, there are not many other options. He said the state is already strapped for resources, and students would have to pay an additional $500 each to fund the project. If the BOR were to fund the project in a different way, it would have to cut roughly 400 positions system-wide.
Despite these concerns, Perry said that the benefits of the project should outweigh the costs.
"If we don't do it … what happens? No technology environments? I don't think that's in the best interests … of the students, faculty, universities and even the employers of this state."
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