Former EMT firefighter Aubrey Earls, who retired in September 2018, saved $93,694 toward a pension over 12 years working for fire departments, Firemen's Annuity and Benefit Fund of Chicago records show.

Over 30 years of retirement, Earls would collect as much as $1.6 million, according to a projection by Local Government Information Services (LGIS), which publishes Sangamon Sun.

The projection assumes Earls received $33,590 in the first year of retirement, then 3 percent annual increases thereafter, compounded.

After 3 years of retirement, Earls will have already received $103,824 in retirement benefits, or more than the sum total of the retiree's contributions to the state pension fund.