Interesting article in today's edition of The Mercury about 280 Montgomery County workers accepting an early retirement package and saying goodbye to Montgomery County government.
Everyone always focuses on the elected leadership, but I sometimes think it's the bureaucracy that runs things in government. If that's the case, then expect a lot of change in 2008 as nearly 300 bureaucrats start work in Norristown.
The purpose of the early retirement program, which the county can offer no more than once every five years, is to streamline county government and to cut costs, Commissioners' Chairman Thomas J. Ellis told reporter Margaret Gibbons.
Under the early retirement program, eligible employees will receive credit for additional years of service equal to 20 percent of their credited service, Gibbons writes.
Those who were eligible for the program had to be 55 or older and with a minimum of 10 years of credited service or those with 30 years of service or more, Gibbons writes.
A total of 721 employees were eligible, according to the article.
The cost of this package to the county is a one-time estimated hit of $4.2 million to cover sick time and other accumulated leave time to participating employees, Gibbons writes. In addition, the county will have to pay an additional $3.2 million in its pension program for each year for the next five years to cover these additional retirees, according to Gibbons.
Two immediate benefits of the early retirements for county taxpayers:
The positions vacated by those who retire may not be filled or are filled by those who will earn smaller salaries, Ellis told Gibbons.
Also, the openings at the top allow for advancement of younger employees, Ellis said.
Ellis was also sent into "retirement" when he failed to win GOP support to run for another term as commissioner. Instead, Ellis is planning to run for Pennsylvania treasurer.
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