Posted:
April 11, 2008
Hello from St. George Utah:
To all the retirees, great to see you starting to write to the Utility Reporter and expressing your comments about the upcoming negotiations between the union and PG&E. Hopefully the union will be able to convince the company that the retirees need COLAs and relief from high medical insurance premiums. As said by so many of you, we seem to have been totally forgotten by the company that we helped to build.
I was in customer service for almost 25 years, working in San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles, Oakland and then transferring back to San Luis Obispo. I retired in 1993, a couple of years early as my goal was to go out in 1995.
In 2004, we moved to St. George, UT, since the cost of living was less. However, since that time we have joined Humana for our medical benefits as the medical premiums that I paid for out of my pension check became higher and my pension check lower. I know that all the retirees are feeling the high cost of food, gas, etc. and with no increase in our pension checks, it is becoming harder to maintain a good and healthy lifestyle. Even here we are feeling the higher cost of living.
I am a member of the union and wish I could be there to participate in the discussions for the new contracts. For you retirees in California, our thoughts are with you during this time and hopefully you can make a difference for the rest of us.
I enjoyed working for PG&E and wish the current employees the best. Keep the faith.
Peggy K. Silva
St. George, UT