Back when I lived in London, I made friends with an old, salty Welshman who had worked as an administrator for the Port of London, before containerized shipping

Back when I lived in London, I made friends with an old, salty Welshman who had worked as an administrator for the Port of London, before containerized shipping made London as a port eternally obsolete. His last official act on the job, 30 or more years prior, had been to assign himself and his cohort generous pensions and an early retirement (he was in his early 50's at the time). I can't blame the man -- jobs at the port were going away forever, and everybody knew it. But anyway, if the same person cuts the cake and serves it you can bet they'll end up with the biggest piece. Pensions for civil servants often fall into that category.