Is a pension really worth it?

[kelsonsa]

Is finding a employer who provides a pension worth it? I have thought about working for Kaiser but I'm reading there union contract and it states "shall provide a monthly income commencing at age 65 of 1.45% of final average monthly compensation over the sixty (60) highest consecutive months out of the last one-hundred and twenty (120) months of employment." So after 10 years their pay is 51.53. I hear Kaiser is one of the best for pensions. So lets say after 10 years pay is 51.53 per hour. 51.53x12(hour days)=618.36 per day x 3 (days worked per week), 1,855.08 per week x 4 (weeks in a month)= 7,420.32 <- per month in the 10th year worked. x .0145 (the retirement) = 107.59 ..... so their “pension” is paying $107/month give or take b/c its over 60 highest consec months?? Or did I calculate wrong b/c that seems not worth it. Educate me. Is this right? Anyone have any great plans out there?

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

15 hours ago, Kooky Korky said:

Is his VA pension taxable? I am assuming this is for disability. It is my understanding that no pension from VA is taxable. Is that correct?

What about his military pension? I am assuming this is for serving 20 or more years and is a retirement pension. This is likely taxable on the Fed but maybe not to your state.

Some states do exclude public pensions from taxation, or tax them at a lower rate than private pensions and other sources of income.

Military service earns veterans many discounts for the rest of their lives. Law enforcement and perhaps other first responders often get discounts, too - like on loans, at stores, movies, restaurants, etc. While I greatly appreciate our veterans and do understand the dangerous nature of law enforcement, this is really not fair to those like nurses who work in dangerous places - ER, Psych, Home Health in bad neighborhoods, etc. Also, what about miners and others who work in severe environments - mills, agriculture, slaughter houses, probably others not coming immediately to mind.

Some places require employees to participate in (contribute a certain amount of their earnings to) the pension plan. Other employers do not - they pay for the entire pension.

There might still be some employers who don't take out Social Security, which means a retiree's (or disabled person's and any spouses or kids who are able to draw on that person's SS benefit) SS checks will be lower than if you work a long time where they do take out SS.

I wish I had known all of this way back when.

All of Dad's pensions are taxable. He gets the VA pension as a separate check (with no taxes withheld), but it was combined with the retired military pension in his 1099,and I had to report the total amount when calculating his gross income.

ETA: We live in Texas, which has no state income tax.

[Horseshoe, BSN, RN]

18 hours ago, offlabel said:

If you are a 20 something RN and don't contribute your maximum amount to at least a traditional if not a Roth IRA yearly (about $6000) you are out of your mind. It's easy, you hardly feel it and you'll be well into the low 7 figures by the time you retire. That doesn't include any retirement benefits from your employment. I didn't take this advice and I'm 2 million dollars poorer than I would be right now.

OUCH.