First responders hope for change in state retirement system

If the state of Alabama doesn’t update state law regarding the public employees retirement system, it may end up having a negative impact years down the road for the Vestavia Hills Police and Fire departments, leaders from both departments said.

In the 2012 legislative session, the Alabama Legislature changed the way employees were classified, with employees starting their jobs on or after Jan. 1, 2013, classified as Tier 2 employees and everyone else as Tier 1. With that came a change in retirement benefits, with Tier 2 employees receiving a lower monthly benefit into their pension, not being able to convert sick time into the pension and having to be 56, with 10 years of service, before receiving retirement benefits. Tier 1 employees can retire after 25 years of service at any age, or at age 60 with at least 10 years of service.

“It’s a disaster waiting to happen,” Police Chief Dan Rary said.

Rary and Vestavia Hills Fire Department Battalion Chief Shawn Jackson said they want the Legislature to pass a law allowing municipalities to opt back into Tier 1 benefits. It should not be mandatory, Rary said, but cities need the option to take care of their employees.

In early March, a Senate bill allowing cities to offer Tier 1 benefits to Tier 2 employees was introduced by several senators, including Vestavia’s Jabo Waggoner (District 16), with another companion bill introduced in the House. As of mid-April, the House bill was still in that chamber, while Waggoner’s bill passed the Senate, and now moves to the House.

With first responders having to wait until 56 to retire, it creates the possibility of the city relying on older officers and firefighters in the future, which could mean the difference between life and death, Rary said.

Jackson said the average age of a heart attack for firefighters and police officers is 49 years old, seven years before benefits kick in.

In December, retired Vestavia firefighter Nathaniel Threats passed away after suffering a stroke in August 2018. Threats had retired in December 2017 and was able to do so because he was a Tier 1 employee. Had he been Tier 2, Jackson said, he could have suffered a stroke in the line of duty.

Older employees are more of a liability to both police and fire departments, Jackson said, as firefighters must be out the door and on the truck within 60 seconds of receiving a fire call.

“That kind of stress is going to be harder on a 60-year-old than a 30-year-old,” Jackson said.

Two police officers have left to pursue jobs in other areas with better benefits, Rary said. The city of Birmingham is not part of the Retirement System of Alabama, and other cities nearby pay higher salaries. One-third of the VHPD is now Tier 2, he said.

When officers or firefighters leave, it’s not like filling jobs in other fields, Rary said. Police officers aren’t ready for street work until after a year of training, he said. Jackson said the problem for firefighters is the inability to transfer from one department to another without having to go to the bottom of the ladder and start their career over.

All fire captains in the city are Tier 1 employees in their 40s. If they were Tier 2, they’d have to work almost another 20 years to be eligible for retirement benefits, Jackson said.

“It’s going to cost somebody something,” Jackson said.

The Vestavia Hills City Council has passed a resolution supporting the legislation. Retirement system officials have also indicated they don’t have a problem with the plan, he said.

“To me, we owe our employees the ability to retire at an age where they can enjoy their end of life,” Rary said.