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WRITE A LETTER TO THE EDITOR TO HELP FIX TIER 2 

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Thank you for offering to write a letter to the editor to demand lawmakers fix Tier 2! Below are some guidelines on how to successfully write and submit a letter to the editor to your local newspaper.

​​WRITING YOUR LETTER

Make sure your letter is in your voice. Be sure to state what you do to serve your community (e.g. “I’ve been a teacher in Murphysboro for 10 years, teaching our young people”). Newspapers vary in their requirements for letters to the editor, but most generally limit letters to approximately 250-400 words total. Below are some helpful points on Tier 2 that you can include in your letter, if you choose.​

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Fixing Tier 2 means investing in a stronger state with better services.

​​Tier 2 is insufficient.


Tier 2 falls well short of providing a stable retirement. The pension is less, it doesn’t keep up with inflation, and workers have to wait until age 67 to collect it. If you don’t receive Social Security, you have no backup if you can’t get by on the second-tier pension.

Tier 2 is unfair.

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Public workers on Tier 2 do the same job as those on Tier 1, and pay the amount toward their pension, but get less. Many Tier 2 participants actually pay more into the system than their pension is worth.​

Tier 2 makes it hard to recruit and keep public workers, which hurts local services.

 

Tier 2 is creating staff shortages that result longer waits for services and diminished quality of care for people who need it.​

​We can Fix Tier 2 by passing the Fair Retirement and Recruitment Act.

 

Workers didn’t create the state’s pension or financial problems – politicians did. Springfield created this problem when is passed Tier 2 and it must fix Tier 2 by passing the Fair Retirement and Recruitment Act.​​

SUBMITTING YOUR LETTER

  • Not sure where to send your letter? Start with the newspapers you and your neighbors read in your community.

  • Follow your newspaper’s instructions on submissions. Please check the “Contact Us” or “Submit a Letter” section of your newspaper’s website to find the appropriate form or email address to submit your letter. 

  • You may need to submit your letter to more than one news outlet in your region. If your first submission is not printed, try another outlet.

  • Many major newspapers (e.g. the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Sun-Times) will limit how often they publish letters on any particular topic. We encourage you to submit your letters to smaller, community newspapers in your area, especially if you live in or near Chicago. Consider papers with a more local focus about your neighborhood.

 

If you would like assistance in editing your letter before you send it to a newspaper, please submit it here.

This is a paragraph where you can add any information you want to share with website visitors. Click here to edit the text, change the font and make it your own.

​​SUBMISSION INFORMATION​

Chicago Tribune

  • Email letters to letters@chicagotribune.com. (Please do not attach your letter as a Word document or a PDF. Type your letter directly into the email.)

  • Letters must be no more than 400 words.

  • Letters must be signed with your full name. Your submission also must contain your contact information, including city and state, as well as your phone number for verification purposes.

 

Chicago Sun-Times

  • Letters should be sent to letters@suntimes.com

  • Letters must include your full name, your neighborhood or hometown and a phone number for verification purposes should it be needed.

  • Length is no more than 375 words.

 

Daily Herald

  • Letters should be sent to fencepost@dailyherald.com

  • Please limit your letter to a maximum of 300 words.

  • Your submission must include your full name, e-mail address, town, and a valid phone number where you can be reached.

 

The Pantagraph

 

The Southern Illinoisan

  • Visit https://thesouthern.com/forms/editorial/lettertoeditor/ to submit your letter

  • All letters to the editor must include the author's name, address and telephone number for verification. Those without telephone numbers will not be used. Letters must be no longer than 250 words.

 

Shaw Newspapers (Daily Chronicle, Herald-News, Kane County Chronicle, Northwest Herald, Sauk Valley Newspapers, etc.)

 

Illinois Times

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News Gazette

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Rock Island Dispatch Argus

 

Quincy Herald Whig

 

PREVIOUSLY PUBLISHED LETTERS TO THE EDITOR AND OP-EDS

These may provide helpful guidance on writings letters on Tier 2, but please make your letter your own!

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Riverbender.com: Letter To The Editor: Nurses and Teachers Demand Fairness in Illinois Retirement System

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Chicago Sun-Times: Illinois lawmakers, get going on fixing Tier 2 pension mess

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Chicago Tribune: Fixing Tier 2 pensions would create a fair retirement for Illinois workers

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Questions? Need more help? Email weareone@ilafl-cio.org
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