Pennsylvania School Pension Board To Discuss Russian Assets
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Millions of dollars from Pennsylvania public school pension funds are tied up and in Russian investments, and that discovery has local teachers demanding action immediately.
The news was shocking to many of them, so today, the Public School Employment Retirement System will have an emergency board meeting to talk about those investments.
Just recently, teachers and public school employees learned that millions of their pension funds were invested not only in Russia, but in Belarus, too.
Money is withdrawn from each paycheck public school teachers and employees receive that goes towards their retirement fund. At the same time, taxpayers through their school boards also make a contribution to that fund.
Given Russia's invasion into Ukraine, teachers say they don't need to know much about Russia's economy to want their investments transferred out of the country.
"We're furious what is happening to people in Ukraine. It's a travesty. And to hear that a penny of our money is being invested in Russia is really very upsetting. We had no idea at all," said Nina Esposito-Visgitis, President of the Pittsburgh Federation of Teachers.
The money that is being invested in Russia only makes up a small total in the grand scheme of the fund's total investments.
The meeting to discuss the investments in Russia is set to take place at 4:00 p.m.