Letters to the Editor
Faso's Anti-Worker Proposal

To the Editor:

It's amazing how out of touch some public officials can be. John Faso claims (Aug. 18 issue) "generous" public employee pensions should be replaced by 401(k)s.

Public employee pensions average only $13,000 annually; hardly a princely sum. Why should public employees give up the security they have earned? Does the government want us all to become like the people who invested their life savings in Enron?

Public employees contribute part of their salary for the first decade. Every penny of a public employee's pension is earned over the course of 30 years of work.

Civil Service Employees' Association members who are public employees earn their pensions by issuing licenses and permits, handling complaints and inspecting homes; by paving and plowing your roads to ensure safe passage for your families; by making sure your public school facilities, parks, and playgrounds are safe and in good repair.

CSEA members who are public employees are Bay Constables, Parole Officers, EMTs, Police and Fire Dispatchers who save lives every day. Public employees taught John Faso when he attended college at the State University at Brockport. Public employees help make New York the Empire State.

Faso claims he values family and hard work. Yet he seeks to dismantle a system that rewards work and provides stability and a decent life for middle-class families. Stable workers buy homes, contribute to the tax base, and support the very businesses Faso champions. He also neglects to mention that he earned a pension as an elected official.

Public employees are the bedrock of strong and stable communities. We did not create the state's budget challenges, and should not be scapegoats for the selfcentered ambitions of public officials.

NICHOLAS J. LaMORTE, President, CSEA Long Island Region

Editor's note: Mr. LaMorte represents 50,000 public employees in the L.I. Region.