Open the Books shares a devastating report on the financial ruin facing Illinois. While crime continues to rise under and public schools continue to fail under leftist Gov. J.B. Pritzker and Chicago’s unhinged Mayor Lori Lightfoot, 132,188 public employees and retirees of the state are making $100,000 or more costing the state $17 billion.
The staggering growth in the $100,000+ salaries and pensions show the 132,188 public employees and retirees making $100,000 in 2021 is up from 94,000 in 2018.
Photo via Open the Books
Meet the Illinois government employee $100,000 Club. It’s comprised of 132,188 public employees and retirees who earned a new ‘minimum wage’ of $100,000 or more.
While crime skyrockets in the neighborhoods, test scores plummet in the public schools, and inflation decimates private-sector paychecks, the Illinois public employee class is living the good life.
Our auditors at OpenTheBooks.com found nearly 500 educators in the public schools with salaries between $200,000 and $439,000. In small towns, city managers made up to $341,300. Three doctors at the University of Illinois at Chicago earned incomes between $1 million and $2.1 million.
Barbers trimmed off $104,000 at State Corrections; janitors at the Chicago Transit Authority cleaned up $143,634; bus drivers in Chicago picked up $242,812; and suburban community college presidents made $418,677.
Public schools (43,500) – Last year, 26,904 educators earned six-figure salaries while 16,592 retirees pocketed $100,000+ pensions. However, test scores plummeted with only 31-percent of students reading at grade level.
Chicago (28,000) – Why is crime out of control in Chicago? It’s a matter of political will— not pay. The Chicago police and fire departments paid 600 employees between $200,000 and $480,000 in cash compensation last year.
In Chicago, 41 ‘street light repair’ workers made between $100,000 and $196,123 and 61 city ‘sign painters’ made six-figures up to $145,341. The boss at the city auto pound reaped $124,783 while the janitors at the auto pound made six-figures too. ‘Sanitation laborers’ made up to $125,783.
In Chicago Public Schools (CPS), CEO, Janice K. Jackson made $361,762: $298,923 in salary with $62,839 in benefits. Jackson’s salary alone exceeded the pay of the U.S. Secretary of Education ($203,500) — a cabinet-level position – by $95,423.
However, student scores plummeted. Just 26-percent of eleventh graders perform at grade level in math and seven in ten students could not read at grade level.
While Chicago citizens are battling soaring crime, Chicago public employees are bringing home impressive paychecks.
Photo via Open the Books
Children failing in Illinois schools? Who cares when you get paychecks like these!
Photo via Open the Books
You can find all the members of the $100,000 club using the Open the Books interactive mapping tool.
