After the New York State Legislature approved a new pension tier that will significantly decrease benefits, thousands of workers have applied to join the current pension system. The new tier took effect on Sunday. Union officials say that the rush to apply makes sense, given the difference in benefit levels. While many employees are automatically enrolled, some are able to choose. Unions who represent state workers say that they encouraged them to join before Sunday. The majority of savings from the new pension system will come in the long term, when workers enrolled in the new tier begin to retire.
See "State Public Workers Rushed to Join Pensions Before Cutbacks", Thomas Kaplan and Kate Taylor, The New York Times, April 2, 2012