Dupage Policy Journal

Former state university employee Karen Thomas, who retired in October 2018, saved $26,693 toward a pension over 19 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Thomas would collect as much as $392,782, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes DuPage Policy Journal.

The projection assumes Thomas received $8,256 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 4 years of retirement, Thomas will have already received $34,541 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.