Close to one-fifth of United States public employees in Indiana have reported skipping health care because they couldn’t afford it.
This statistic comes from a study by MissionSquare Research Institute, an organisation that analyses data from public sector retention and retirement.
Lead researcher and Professor at the University of Massachusetts, Christian E. Weller said financial insecurity was a growing problem for most Americans, and the problem could be acute for public service workers
“This report is a clear indication that public sector benefits play a major role in financial wellness for the public worker,” Professor Weller said.
“Public employers are wise to continue offering strong benefits packages that not only shore up financial and retirement security but also serve as magnets for public service workers.”
In addition to discovering the issues public sector employees have financially, he siad the study found that oftentimes, employers had the ability to combat this if they would offer different benefit opportunities for their employees.
Professor Weller said that from 2017 to 2019, 14 per cent of public sector households—as well as 11.3 per cent in public education—indicated they could not pay all their bills.
Almost one in three employees said they would struggle to find $400 in case of an emergency, “showing that they are unable to build savings”.
In addition, around 80 per cent of public employees worried they did not have enough money to last them throughout their retirement.
Professor Weller said that within Indiana, retention of public sector employees had proven a recent issue.
Indianapolis, 10 February 2023
