Chicago City Wire

Former state university employee Vera Hardy, who retired in January 2016, saved $72,807 toward a pension over 30 years working for state universities, State Universities Retirement System of Illinois records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Hardy would collect as much as $1.8 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Chicago City Wire.

The projection assumes Hardy received $37,810 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 2 years of retirement, Hardy will have already received $76,754 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.