Chicago City Wire

Former special education worker Joanne Chamis, who retired in December 2016, saved $78,003 toward a pension over 15 years working for public schools, Chicago Teachers' Pension Fund records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Chamis would collect as much as $1.37 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Chamis received $28,827 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Chamis will have already received $89,102 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the teachers' pension fund.