News release: Retired teachers to march to STRS headquarters to demand return of their COLA

From the Cincinnati Federation of Teachers - Retired

News Release – June 21, 2018

Retired teachers march to STRS-Ohio headquarters in Columbus to demand that the STRS Board keep their promise to teachers and restore their COLA. Bus departs at 7:30 from Oakley Station.

Contact: Liz Jones, President Cincinnati Federation of Teachers –Retired chapter at ijon48@hotmail.com (513-288-0287)

On Thursday, June 21, 2018, active and retired teachers from all over Ohio will descend on the STRS (State Teachers Retirement System) headquarters at 275 East Broad Street, Columbus, Ohio. These Ohio teachers are demanding a return of their cost-of living adjustment (COLA). STRS froze this benefit for retired teachers AFTER they had retired. These teachers were promised this adjustment to keep up with inflation over their retirement life span. A motor coach and cars full of active and retired Cincinnati teachers plan to travel to the State capital.

An average teacher will lose a monumental sum of retirement funds over this five plus year timespan of the cost-of living-freeze and over $100,000 in thirty plus years of retirement. The Ohio STRS system is one of the strongest funded retirement systems in the country placing second in a study of 162 nationwide using private equity funds.

The Ohio STRS system is well funded and the current $77 Billion fund balance has sufficient reserves to pay 75% of all of the currently earned pension obligations today, even though some of those obligations will not come due for 60 or 70 years. With such a long investment time horizon STRS should easily be able to fund future pensions.

The STRS investments returned 14.29% last year, are up 9.5% this year and have never earned less than an 8% return over all 30 year rolling periods. By comparison, Kentucky's Funded Ratio is only 37%, less than half of the Ohio Funded Ratio. Yet Kentucky DID NOT cut retired teachers pensions or their COLA. Teachers want to know why the STRS Ohio Board took such draconian measures especially since Ohio teachers do not pay into Social Security. However, they do contribute 14% or 2.25 times as much of their salary to STRS retirement as Social Security requires.

In a grassroots effort, over 5200 teachers have signed the "Restore Our COLA" petition in the last 35 days. Members plan to continue travelling to Columbus to demand the STRS Board restore their COLA.

STRS needs to keep their promise to teachers and restore the COLA.