The Public Sector Has, In Fact, Lost Jobs. But Does Obama Understand Why?

Here's why.

We're paying more than ever for public sector employees.

So why isn't employment in that sector going up?

Because each employee demands higher and higher raises (even in a recession) and greater and greater retirement benefits (even in a depression).

They will not permit the smallest adjustment in their steady march to become Bureaucrat Millionaires.

Ergo, states are finding that even with more money to pay them, they can't pay as many of them.

That's why, champ.

For example, in San Jose:

A lot of that increase is due to rising required pension payments, as the assets in the city’s pension funds have lost value. But much also had to do with what Mayor Chuck Reed, a Democrat, describes as “irresponsible policy actions” over the last 15 years. Here’s his list:

1. Giving out raises faster than revenues were growing.

2. Giving out raises and increasing benefits when revenues were falling.

3. Giving out raises and benefits retroactively.

4. Allowing employees to cash out unlimited amounts of sick leave when they retire.

5. Providing lifetime health care for retirees.

He also notes that “the City Council and outside arbitrators also significantly enhanced retirement benefits. The maximum benefit for public safety employees grew from 75 percent of final salary to 90 percent, and a guaranteed 3 percent cost-of-living adjustment was awarded to all employees.”

In other words, the city made a lot of promises that it could barely afford when times were good, and now that times are bad, it really can’t afford them.

Obama's prescription is not to reduce these ridiculous payments to Democratic Clients, of course. He simply wants to give state and local government more money, to pay for the same number of workers, to insure than public employees never have to modify their pigs-at-the-trough appetites for taxpayer dollars.

Why would we pay for more of the same?

Why should private sector workers just barely getting by wish to pay even higher taxes to support the bureaucrat millionaires' club?

Obama's plan is not to hire "more teachers, policemen, and firemen" (and why do you need more with a population that's only growing a little bit?).

His plan is to just throw money at them, so that the same number of public employees get all their ill-advised, political-payola benefits.

He's not trying to reduce unemployment -- he's merely doing his Clients some Client Service.

posted by Ace at 08:22 PM

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