Secretary-Treasurer's Message
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| CPF Secretary-Treasurer Lew Stone |
Preparing for Tough Times
As firefighters, we pride ourselves in being prepared for any type of emergency situation. We train "for the unexpected." Every "what if..." becomes a scenario for a tabletop discussion. Ironically, most of us do not plan our personal lives with the same level of detail.
It is obvious to all that our economy will take many years to recover and it remains to be seen what the "new economy" will look like. Our profession will undoubtedly look different in the years to come. Our enemies will try, under the pretext of "efficiency," to eviscerate our hard-fought wages and benefits. Jealousies will drive those who used to gloat about their profit sharing to make sure our pensions are a fraction of what they have. Your union is the bulwark against this onslaught.
So, what should we consider in preparing ourselves for the times to come? And in reality, if you have not already considered many of the points below, it could be almost be too late. While we could call this "Family Budgeting 101," sadly many firefighters are denying the possibility that they could be affected. Denial is a powerful defense mechanism, but unfortunately it does not stand up in the face of reality.
First, there is huge value in drawing your family into the conversation about what is going on with your employment. What does the next year look like? The next five years? How will your earnings stack up against real purchasing power? If your spouse and children understand how things might be different (without dwelling on the negative), it send a signal that we must watch what we spend money on.
Calculate what your take-home pay would be with a percentage reduction in salary. Be realistic. If you have supplemented your income with overtime, etc., what would losing some or all of those supplements do to your standard of living?
If things are going to be extremely tight, consider consulting a financial expert. Have that person look at items such as deferred compensation or other long-term investments. Do an analysis of what the tradeoff would be in taxes versus a deferred comp reduction.
Then there are those big ticket items (and the monthly payments that go with them). How much of your income is going into "depreciating assets?" Can you get rid of some of them? There might be short term hit, but long-term advantage in downsizing the fleet. Don't wait until your back is against the wall.
Hopefully, as you have read this, you are ahead of the curve. Your financial situation is flexible and ready to adjust to further bad news. If not, then it's never too late to take positive steps to gain a measure of financial stability.