July 2016

The slow shift away from defined benefit plans for public employees suggests teachers may one day receive portable, sustainable, and secure retirement benefits.
While maintaining the Social Security status quo might seem at the very least unobtrusive, it neglects an opportunity to extend coverage to the over 1 million teachers and 6.5 million government workers whose jobs go uncovered.
By comparing groups of workers as they hit the same career milestones, we can get a more accurate portrait of how worker mobility has changed over time.
Teaching is a difficult profession, and not everyone can do it well, or wants to do it for an entire lifetime. But everyone deserves a secure retirement, and the state shouldn't put teachers at risk anymore.
The majority of teacher pension plans actually incentivize employees to exit at a predetermined age, quietly penalizing those who continue to work. This deters experienced educators from continuing in the classroom, and recent data suggests it may have negative effects on students, too.
As a part of her Initiative on Technology & Innovation, Clinton proposes that the government ensure that employee benefits are “flexible, portable, and comprehensive.” She argues that strong benefits that workers can take with them whenever they move and that can be customized to meet their specific needs are essential to a 21st century workforce. Clinton's proposals would go a long way to ensure teacher pensions provide educators with better benefits.
The shift from a veteran-dominated teaching workforce to one more heavily tilted toward newcomers has implications for how we calculate average teacher salaries and the policies needed to boost teacher compensation.
With stocks hitting new all-time highs this week, it might be tempting to think pension plans would be celebrating. They're not, for at least a few reasons.