Nice Work If You Can Get It

By Prescott Carlson in News on May 25, 2008 1:54PM

Imagine a job where you only had to work for 8 weeks, and that short stint would net you almost $38,000 a year from the day you retire all the way until you're six feet under. Former state Senator Carol Ronen got that dream gig -- she worked as an adviser in Governor Blagojevich's office for a mere two months, and that time will boost her pension by 35% to $102,000 a year. As if that weren't bad enough, Ronen actually had the hubris to come out and say that she earned every penny of what will likely amount to her receiving over $2,000 per hour of service:

"My entire career has been devoted to public service, part of the time in the Legislature and part of the time in the executive branches of state and city governments," Ronen said. "My pension is based on all those years of service. It's not a scam."

If it walks like a duck... State Representative Jack Franks, a Democrat, had some choice words about the situation:

Franks cited Ronen as an example of "abuse of the pension system," adding that "it illustrates why it's no surprise our pension system is in peril and why citizens have lost faith in the governor."

Is it any wonder that Illinois has the worst pension problem of any state in the country?[S-T]