Penny Thomas
Missouri LAGERS provides defined benefit plans to government entities because they help attract workers to provide valuable services for communities. Since the amount of the benefit is tied to longevity of your service, defined benefit plans discourage turnover. But, most importantly, defined benefit plans help employees retire when they should. This is good for the employer so they can avoid the additional costs incurred when employees stay on the job too long. All of these advantages of a defined benefit retirement plan are also good for the community as a whole.Here’s how:
Taxpayers want well maintained streets, good parks, healthy businesses, and great public safety. These things are products of well-trained, experienced, and motivated public workers who will eventually receive a dignified retirement under LAGERS. These retirees will receive monthly lifetime benefits. These benefits are not stuffed under a mattress and forgotten, but spent within their community.
Close to 93% of LAGERS-participating workers remain living in the same community after retirement, so their retirement benefits are then re-invested in local goods and services.
There are LAGERS retirees living in every county in Missouri, and their pension benefits can really add up.
LAGERS paid out $283 million to 21,845 benefit recipients last year.
$263 million stayed in Missouri.
That’s income these Missourians can depend on every month; and income that helps ensure middle class workers remain middle class during retirement.
As the above infographic depicts, employee benefits provide value not only to the employee, but to all. Defined benefit pensions help attract good workers, incentivize those workers to stay with their employer during their most productive years, then allow them to retire when they should. During retirement, the steady monthly payments are reinvested in the community to purchase goods and services. For all of these reasons, defined benefit pension plans are a good value for employees, employers, taxpayers, and Missouri communities.
For more information about how pensions work, visit our “A Guide to Pensions” page.
