My DH works in the public sector and they got no increase both last year and this year (and the smart ones are happy to get that).
Other public sector employees in the same field (but different employers) have had their pay cut anywhere from 5-15% and have had to increase their contributions to their retirement plans (some public entities are eliminating their contributions entirely and going to 100% employee contributions).
IMHO, the public sector (and any private sector businesses that rely on public spending) will lead the next leg down. There are probably going to be some pretty significant cuts in the next few years.
Our investment income, which I manage, is down significantly as I’m very bearish and have moved almost completely into cash at this point.
Overall, we are making about 20-30% less than a couple of years ago, mostly due to the decline in investment income, but we are glad we haven’t had any investment losses these past few years.
