The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1944-02-08
City Pensions

ing the newly organized city pension
commission, as 1t takes it's first step to-
ward an eventual revision of the cityS
pension system, will not make the latter
task simple one. It will be difficult to
do justice by the numerous meritorious
ramificationS already within the present
system, and still come forth with for
NAL, comprehensive program that will
have positive singlenesS of purpose.
The ill-adviSed, ill-timed and poorly
presented appeals of some city employees
and beneficiaries of former employees, as
witnessed in last years session of the
state legislature, despite their regrettable
appearance of ripper legislation" never
theless fostered action that should event.
ually prove beneficial to all, If handled
properly. There was much merit to
many of the appeals as based on long,
faithful years of service to the city, desire
for old-age security and other human
factors, and it can safely be stated that
it was an unpleasant task for the admin
iStration to oppose many of them. Yet 1t
was equally as unpleasant and distasteful
for most of the appellants to be required
to resort to such means as legislative ac-
ton to obtain what they felt was their
just due.
It was so glaring, at the time, that the
pension system itself was faulty and not
the claims of either side, necessarily, that
il was generally agreed by all on the need
for revision; hence the formation of the
commission. Therefore the latter'S pri1-
cipal task will be the formulation of some
plan which will reasonably assure city
employees and their administration that
there will never again be need for such
regrettable occurrences as were wit
messed last year in Hartford.
The hiring of an actuary, by the COM
mission, to study the structure of the
city's pension system is a step in the right
direction. The meaning of the word &C
tuary," an expert in life assurance" gives
promise of justice being done, if handled
properly.
Following the findings and recommen-
dations, of the latter, based on statistical
and mathematical truths the commission
will be in a position to apply and merge
the practical and economical with the
human factors that are so large part OF
any pension system.
The commission is bound to meet with
difficulty in the fact that there can be
no one phase of the system that is OF
more Importance than another, wherein
the individual is concerned. Because OF
eral problem of revision of a city pension
system there can be no purpoSeful segre-
cation of any one problem for the purpose
of attaining an overall solution. For eX-
ample, there can be no division between
the economical phase and its relation TO
the taxpayers and the phase dealing
with the individual pensioner. One can
not be credited with more Importance
than the other
1t seems, at this writing, that some in
surance plan calling for percentage con-
tribution by the employe and the city as
means of establishing individual pen
sions would be the most advantageous
for ALL Although it is improbable that
Waterbury will ever find itself, under its
present system, of being in such economic
straits that it could not meet its pension
obligations for any certain period, the
fact that its pensioners are, in truth,
dependent on the benevolence of the city
for their promise of some measure OF
Old-age security, can hardly be termed
any kind of insurance" It cannot be
comforting to the IS or 10 year old pen
siOneer to realize that under severe econ
nOmical conditions his or her pension
might be temporarily reduced or even
withheld. A reserve built upon his or her
contributions and those of the city as an
employer really gives promise of "life as
sllrance".
These are but the general outlines OF
MANY of the problems confronting the
commission and every good wish is ex-
terded to it's members in their aSsump-
ton Of its task.