Author Topic: Antimustacian customer  (Read 4576 times)

Latwell

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Antimustacian customer
« on: May 25, 2014, 10:20:50 PM »
Background: I'm full time accountant (audit schools/towns) and part-time delivery girl.

This weekend, an ignorant customer comes in and asks me a bunch of questions which escalated into an argument.

Customer is asking me if I'm in school, what I went to school for, why I'm working "here" even though I have my masters. I respond, I work in the field I went to school for and this job is called extra income.

After I said what my full time job was, he assumed I worked for the state. I corrected him he tells me to work for the state so that I could work 20 years and retire. I pointed out that I don't need to work for the state in order to retire. He was so fixated on how I should work for the state.. people that don't work for the state assume the state employees have such great benefits. However, this isn't the case anymore. The benefits have drastically changed.

So I point out that I can work where ever I want and retire much sooner than 20 years if I wanted. He follows up by asking me how I would save for retirement.... I gave him a weird look and said he should know what other options there are since he also doesn't work for the state. Of all the options I listed, he makes me feel as if I only listed one (401k) by talking about the stock market going down the drain.

Luckily, I don't run into many customers who are this frustrating, but when I do... ugh.


HoneyBadger

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #1 on: May 26, 2014, 11:48:25 AM »
It amazes me that people think they can only retire if they have a government pension.  The municipality I retired from requires employees to contribute 14% of their gross pay to the pension fund.  If most people contributed that much to a Vanguard target date fund and rolled the fund balance into an immediate annuity after 30 or 35 years, they would have a pension!  Even if they skipped the annuity and withdrew 4% from the fund in retirement, they would probably be better off then they would under most government pensions (which are not so generous these days). 

agent_clone

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #2 on: May 26, 2014, 03:15:02 PM »
Also am I mis-remembering things or did Detroit go bankrupt and not pay ex-employees their pension? i.e. there is no guarantee that you will get your pension anyway.

HoneyBadger

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #3 on: May 26, 2014, 06:41:54 PM »
The last I heard, general (non-public safety) Detroit pensioners were going to take a 34% reduction in their pensions. 

Latwell

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #4 on: May 26, 2014, 07:28:24 PM »
It amazes me that people think they can only retire if they have a government pension.  The municipality I retired from requires employees to contribute 14% of their gross pay to the pension fund.  If most people contributed that much to a Vanguard target date fund and rolled the fund balance into an immediate annuity after 30 or 35 years, they would have a pension!  Even if they skipped the annuity and withdrew 4% from the fund in retirement, they would probably be better off then they would under most government pensions (which are not so generous these days).

14% contribution? danggg. Although that's a good thing, that's more than double what most NJ government/education employees contribute.

The other thing that pissed me off about this guy was how he was making it seem like the money going into the pension wasn't your money. I feel like people have this misconception about state employees and the contributions from the employer as if the employer is contributing an insane amount.

HoneyBadger

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #5 on: May 28, 2014, 08:18:32 AM »
Worse - we have a local politician that likes to rant to the media about the "cash bonuses" retirees receive from "the taxpayers."  He's talking about the balances in employees' 457 accounts (the government version of 401ks).  So, if I max out my contribution every year and leave with a nice 'stache, that's a "bonus?" 

The Money Monk

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #6 on: May 28, 2014, 08:24:49 AM »
Sounds like you were 'casting your pearls before swine" so to speak. I wouldn't even bother arguing with asshats like that

randymarsh

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #7 on: May 28, 2014, 08:39:47 AM »
I feel like people have this misconception about state employees and the contributions from the employer as if the employer is contributing an insane amount.

In my state public employees have to put 10% of their gross pay into the pension fund (or they can choose to manage their own investment plan, but it's still 10%) and the employer puts 14% in. Very few companies would provide a 401k match like that.

I'm not saying it's unreasonable or anything, but I think it's a pretty good deal. 24% going into retirement before you even see your paycheck.

HoneyBadger

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Re: Antimustacian customer
« Reply #8 on: May 28, 2014, 10:50:52 AM »
It's important to evaluate total compensation.  The agency I worked for pays, on average, 20% less than the private sector when salary only is considered.  However, total compensation (including benefits) is comparable (results of a recent compensation study).

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!