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Even in the federal government where workers are supposed to be treated the same and be paid based on their grade level, there are differences. Take the two main retirement systems.
If history repeats itself, the budget President Donald Trump sent to Congress Monday afternoon will again be a political bombshell
Somewhere out there, the person or persons who, in the late 1990s, predicted Uncle Sam was facing a massive wave of retirements may be happy at last. Or not!
Although the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) was launched in the 1980s, it is still considered the “new” plan by workers who remained in the old Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS).
The TSP option is a nice but not absolutely essential thing to have for those under the more generous CSRS retirement program with its higher benefit and full protection from inflation.
Have you asked yourself all the right questions about your retirement?
Is the government using the wrong measuring tool to track inflation and thus producing the wrong cost of living adjustments?
So what if the government gave current CSRS employees a choice: retire by a to be determined date and get full CSRS credit for their annuity, or continue in their jobs but with future benefits compiled under the less-generous FERS system. Which would you choose?
It's quiet, as August is a time when things are on hold until at least after Labor Day. But a lot awaits lawmakers when they return.
Things are looking good. but the possibility of yet another government shutdown remains, as today's guest columnist Abraham Grungold points out.
Nearly every year for the past decade lawmakers have gone after the two major federal retirement programs, FERS and CSRS. So far, groups representing workers and retirees have managed to beat back the changes — but there have been some close calls.
With half the legislative year over and Democrats running the House while political eyes focus on 2020 races, the retirement plan looks safe for now.
Most TSP investors know the stock market is long overdue for a major correction. The question is when will that happen, how long will it last, and what if anything you should be doing about it?
When it comes to saving and investing for retirement, federal and military personnel are way ahead of their private sector counterparts.