State workers to rally for pensions, pay (Oklahoma)

Hundreds of state employees are expected at the Oklahoma Capitol to urge lawmakers to retain their pension benefits and implement a total compensation package that would include better salaries. Although Monday, President's Day, is a state holiday, the state House of Representatives and the Oklahoma Senate will be in session. Legislative leaders say reforming state pension systems is a top priority this year because of their collective $16.5 billion unfunded liability. But state workers want their pension benefits to remain as they are, according to officials at the Oklahoma Public Employees Association, which represents about 10,000 of the state's 36,000...