The following are the percentages of the public and private workforces that are union members in selected cities:
Memphis
Public: 29.3%
Private: 5.3%
Nashville
Public: 20.7%
Private: 2.4%
Atlanta
Public: 15.9%
Private: 4.5%
Birmingham
Public: 28.0%
Private: 9.1%
Chattanooga
Public: 12.8%
Private: 1.5%
St. Louis
Public: 29.5%
Private: 9.5%
Louisville
Public: 36.1%
Private: 11.3%
Chicago
Public: 53.4%
Private: 10.7%
Jacksonville
Public: 31.9%
Private: 6.0%
New OrleansPublic: 19.1%
Private: 2.4%
I wonder if the cities with the higher public unions percentages also have higher unfunded liabilities?? I’ll bet a cheeseburger in the answer being yes.
Interesting question. These are per capita city unfunded actuarial accrued pension liabilities according to report by Morningstar Municipal Credit Research, which looked at 26 cities (Memphis was third from the bottom). Of the cities in our union members list, only four were included in the report:
Memphis: $317
Nashville: $876
Chicago: $7,149
Jacksonville: $2,586
Here are some other comparisons:
Pension unfunded liabilities in millions of dollars (according to Pew Charitable Trust in 2009):
Memphis: $3577
Nashville: $3107
Atlanta: $3171
Birmingham: $1186
Louisville: $1202
Chicago: $24971
Jacksonville: $4028
Unfunded retiree health benefits:
Memphis: $1842
Nashville: $1779
Atlanta: $1085
Birmingham$ $78
Louisville: $594
Chicago: $1012
Jacksonville: $137