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tpreitzel
12-11-2009, 10:02 AM
"The growth in six-figure salaries has pushed the average federal worker's pay to $71,206, compared with $40,331 in the private sector."

http://www.usatoday.com/printedition/news/20091211/1afedpay11_st.art.htm?loc=interstitialskip

Oh, but aren't these workers primarily located in locations with higher COLA? ;) Are we mad, yet, America? I sense the need for another billboard campaign with slogans like: "Who's fleecing whom?", "Servants or kings?", "Congress, the fattened calf ready for slaughter".

tangent4ronpaul
12-11-2009, 03:59 PM
but, but, but - the average bailout "created" job only costs $250,000 and some of them don't even exist!

Oh, wait...

Hay, how about the Federal Gvmt hires everyone that's unemployed. At those rated you could hire 3 fed workers for every bailout job! :rolleyes:

-t

NYgs23
12-11-2009, 04:45 PM
Statist response, "If only those greedy corporations would pay the workers a living wage, just like our public servants receive."

MelissaWV
12-11-2009, 04:50 PM
That stat is a little bit skewed for various reasons, but I'll just pick a few:

This is an average of all wages, which means they're not comparing "apples to apples" (this is even mentioned in the article). Even still, "average" is not a very fair way of calculating this, as there will be outliers. Is that "average" wage inclusive of outliers like CEOs and Bill Gates?

This statistic only includes wages, and not benefits. Let's face it... a lot of Government jobs are more about benefits (some under the table) than just pay. That makes the real value of Government jobs higher.

This doesn't take into account regional variations. "Private sector" jobs include almost all of the jobs in areas where the cost of living is low, and only some of the high cost ones. Most capitols (where true Government employees work) are not cheap places to live.

This statistic likely doesn't take into account the fact that a LOT of Government jobs are done by temps/contractors. They are generally not counted as "Government wages" and are paid lower wages. In fact, though a temp might work for the Government, they will be counted in the private category, tipping the scales in that direction. With the economy how it is, how many jobs that used to be on that line between permanent employee and temp are now being done by temps? It doesn't say.

In other words, the numbers don't really tell anything definitive either way, except that people have an agenda... and don't feel like being thorough in their reporting :(

devil21
12-11-2009, 05:07 PM
Government tends to pay less than the private sector during the booms but more than the private sector during the busts. I agree that it's a somewhat misleading statistic.

$71K is almost exactly what I made as a local gov't IT employee a few years ago in a very expensive part of the country. It wasn't a lot of money when housing was going through the roof but it sounds like a lot now with people losing their jobs and homes left and right. $71K doesn't go very far these days. The problem isn't the gov't pay scales, it's the amount of gov't jobs overall.

dannno
12-11-2009, 05:09 PM
Statist response, "If only those greedy corporations would pay the workers a living wage, just like our public servants receive."

:D

LibForestPaul
12-11-2009, 07:05 PM
I don't really care about bs media stats.

I have personal anecdotal evidence, more than enough for me.

1 city Teacher =
$75000.
50% pay after 20 years
Full medical, full dental, life ins, 2 months paid leave...
http://www.trs.nyc.ny.us/

1 suburb Teacher = "Best part time job I ever had"

1 State officer = (rookie 3yrs)
$55k
50% pay after 20 years
Full med,dental...not sure about months off
Car to take home.
Property tax break

Government jobs are sweet...Tried for a couple myself...

HOLLYWOOD
12-11-2009, 08:45 PM
I'm too lazy to post it right now but another missing cost that the article should have printed:

$180+ BILLION in FEDERAL pensions is the cost in this calendar Year of 2009 to the American Taxpayers

tangent4ronpaul
12-11-2009, 08:52 PM
Wow - "pensions" ! I haven't heard that word in a while.

Now adays it's more like: my job was outsourced overseas and I got laid off.

or

My hours were cut to under for 40 a week so my employer didn't have to give me bennies...

-t