Ronald Guarnieri

As I begin to “plead my case” I am somewhat hesitant. The reason I am hesitant is because I think this is, most likely, an exercise in futility just as the pension hearings I attended many years ago were. Those hearings were a “fait accompli.”

They were over before they started. The fix was in.

Anyway, because I am a sucker for punishment, I’ll tell you my story.

On April 14, 1974, I was hired as a Clinical Psychologist at the Institute of Mental Health in Cranston, RI. I was made aware of all State of RI policies and Union agreements with the State of RI. Of particular interest to me was the retirement agreement. I was twenty seven years old at the time and I remember thinking that if I worked for thirty five years, I would retire at a pension of 80% of my last three years earnings. Also, I would receive a 3 percent per year compounded pension. Although I had numerous opportunities for higher paying jobs over my 35 years employed as a Clinical Psychologist at the State of RI psychiatric hospital, I chose to remain primarily driven by the pension contract between my Union Local 580 and the State of Rhode Island.

Well guess what? The State of Rhode Island reneged on their end of the agreement. I received a total of one cost of living increase before Governor Gina Raimondo (illegally & immorally in my opinion) put an abrupt end to COLA’s. I consider what was done to me, my family, my brother (35 years teacher), his family, my friends and all others involved to be nothing short of stealing.

Make no mistake about it, It is immoral and unconscionable to have someone work for that long a time period of time expecting to receive what is promised to them and then have the rules of the game changed AFTER the game has started. Whomever is reading this, put yourself in my position. How would you feel/react.

What was done to so many of us by so few (politicians and lawmakers) would make for an unbelievable story on the TV program “60 Minutes.”

In fact, there exists a group of retirees who meet regularly and have discussed approaching “60 Minutes” with our sad story. We have decided to wait until after this legislative session to see what they decide before going forward. There will be no way of preventing this group from going forward and presenting our story if we do not get what we were promised to receive during our working tenure as state workers, teachers, or municipal employees.

Now, I ask, will someone actually read my diatribe or will it just prove to be another exercise in futility meant to look like someone actually cares about the injustice perpetrated upon the innocent members of the Rhode Island Employees State Retirement System? I ask the Pension Advisory Working Group to bring our stories before the Rhode Island Legislature. I await your response.

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