Retired municipal employees in Boston are once again urging the Boston Retirement Board to elevate the annual cost of living adjustment (COLA) for pensioners.
This appeal follows a previous rejection by the board, influenced by Mayor Michelle Wu’s recommendations.
For years, retirees and their unions have campaigned for a larger COLA, which would provide a significant annual increase in pension payouts to better reflect the rising costs of housing, groceries, and transportation.
Currently, retirees receive an annual COLA increase of $450, but they are advocating for an increase of $90, raising it to $540.
Supporters of the increase argue that this additional $90 would significantly assist retirees who are facing the city’s high living costs and the inflation trends of recent years.
However, Mayor Wu has expressed concerns over the city’s uncertain economic outlook and lackluster performance of its pension fund investments, deeming an increase in the COLA adjustment at this time irresponsible.
The proposed $90 increase translates to a cost of nearly $32 million in the upcoming fiscal year, a figure Wu argues is too burdensome on the city as it focuses on paying off long-term debts.
On Friday, representatives from several leading labor unions in Boston presented their case to the Boston Retirement Board, supported by Councilors Ed Flynn and Gigi Coletta Zapata, along with staff representing Councilors Ben Weber and Ruthzee Louijeune.
Last year, the City Council unanimously passed a resolution advocating for the COLA increase, but the board still rejected the motion.
Coletta Zapata, speaking before the board, recognized the financial responsibilities the board has to consider but urged them to remember the contributions of city retirees.
“Our Boston retirees have literally built the city; they’ve dug trenches, they’ve kept us safe, they’ve cleaned our schools,” she stated.
She also cautioned about the long-term repercussions of maintaining financial constraints that keep pensioners in poverty.
Currently, annual COLA payments for retired city employees are calculated based on a figure referred to as the “COLA base,” fixed at $15,000 in Boston.
According to state law, municipalities can approve annual COLA payments for pensioners up to a maximum of 3 percent of this COLA base.
Last summer, the Boston Retirement Board determined the COLA payment for the 2025 fiscal year would be $450, aligning with the 3 percent cap on the present COLA base.
Mayor Wu is advocating for the board to authorize the same COLA payment for the fiscal year 2026.
Retirees, their unions, and supportive city councilors are pressing for an increase in the COLA base from $15,000 to $18,000, which would allow for a $90 enhancement to the annual COLA if the board accepts the full 3 percent adjustment.
The COLA base hasn’t been raised since 2021, when the board moved it from $14,000 to $15,000, as noted by Janey Frank, a former Boston Public Schools teacher and leader of the Retired Teachers Chapter of the Boston Teachers Union.
Since 2010, retired city employees have seen just three COLA base increases, which have only incrementally lifted annual cost of living payments for pensioners from $360 to $450.
The additional $90 a year, translating to just $7.50 per month, could have a substantial positive impact on retirees struggling financially, asserted Erik Berg, president of the Boston Teachers Union.
“For most of us, maybe all of us in this room, that’s not a cost that we need to think about,” Berg commented.
He continued, “But retirees do. A modest increase is affordable to this city.”
During her campaign in the 2021 mayoral election, Wu had previously indicated her support for raising the COLA base.
However, after recent discussions with Cadillic and representatives from various labor unions, she expressed her inability to advocate for such an increase at this time, citing fiscal responsibility.
As Wu stated in a recent interview, “As mayor, I have to make decisions that are based on real-time information on what is fiscally sustainable.”
She remains hopeful that as the economy stabilizes and municipal finances improve, there will be potential for future discussions on the COLA increase.
Niki Griswold can be contacted at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @nikigriswold.
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