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Pay maybe relative, until you retire.
I know that some areas are cheaper to live in then the San Francisco bay area, so making more out here equates to making less some where else, BUT that all changes when you retire, if you live that long.
When I retired in 2006, my rate was $45+ per hour (with the incentives like 6% extra for working graveyard and 7% extra for having a P.O.S.T. advanced certificate.) I had been pulling in over $100,000 a year for several years prior to my retirement(which included overtime and such.) The going rate now is (approx) $48+ per hour for someone equal to my former rating (patrolman.).
When it came time for retirement, the formula used for my old department is 3% @ 50, meaning you get 3% of your highest year's salary, for each year you worked, which you could start collecting at 50 years old. Our contract maxed out at 90% of your salary (not including overtime.)
This meant I retired with a pension of nearly $80,000 per year, with up to 2% C.O.L.A. (cost of living adjustments) per year. That plus our contract included health insurance for life if you retired out.
So, you may think that adjustment for salaries based on the area you live in evens thing out, but if I moved into your area with a cheaper cost of living, I am still getting paid like I live the more expensive area.
The end run of all this, make the most that you can, so your pension will be higher, where ever it is, (if it's a good place to work that is) and you can move to that area where things are cheaper later.
I know that some areas are cheaper to live in then the San Francisco bay area, so making more out here equates to making less some where else, BUT that all changes when you retire, if you live that long.
When I retired in 2006, my rate was $45+ per hour (with the incentives like 6% extra for working graveyard and 7% extra for having a P.O.S.T. advanced certificate.) I had been pulling in over $100,000 a year for several years prior to my retirement(which included overtime and such.) The going rate now is (approx) $48+ per hour for someone equal to my former rating (patrolman.).
When it came time for retirement, the formula used for my old department is 3% @ 50, meaning you get 3% of your highest year's salary, for each year you worked, which you could start collecting at 50 years old. Our contract maxed out at 90% of your salary (not including overtime.)
This meant I retired with a pension of nearly $80,000 per year, with up to 2% C.O.L.A. (cost of living adjustments) per year. That plus our contract included health insurance for life if you retired out.
So, you may think that adjustment for salaries based on the area you live in evens thing out, but if I moved into your area with a cheaper cost of living, I am still getting paid like I live the more expensive area.
The end run of all this, make the most that you can, so your pension will be higher, where ever it is, (if it's a good place to work that is) and you can move to that area where things are cheaper later.
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