scrubbedexpat091

Not really a surprise to most I am sure.

Public sector workers earn 37 per cent more than private counterparts: report | CTV News

Apparently if government brought wages inline with private sector, they would save 20 billion a year.

Pizzawheel

I've always suspected the salaries were roughly equal but with the benefits the public sector is much better here. But 37% higher?

Jeebus.

Almost Canadian

I have no issue with how much anyone earns. If they can persuade someone to pay them all the best to them. Just don't go on about how overworked and underpaid you are.

scrubbedexpat091

There are lots of people who are undervalued and over worked. Society only see's value in certain jobs, others society don't see value but the jobs are still necessary but pay poorly because of how society views those jobs.

But I have never seen an overworked government employee... My ex-wife worked for the feds at the end of the marriage, and she made 40,000 to push papers, she even admitted she did very little work compared to the same type of job she had previously in the private sector that paid 22,000 a year.

Add in all the time off she could take, and benefits, she made out pretty good.

Almost Canadian

The point of this post is ...

scrubbedexpat091

No real point really. It's called boredom and your post to me implied people can't be overworked and underpaid which isn't true.

Almost Canadian

The inference you drew from my post is a matter for you. I was simply pointing out that, if someone bargains to work for another, they are foolish to complain about it rather than do something to change it.

Tirytory

This has been an ongoing argument in the UK..... It is not a race to the bottom! Public sector workers don't need to take a pay cut, private needs to up it's game as argued by myself on your previous threads on similar issues.

As one such previous overworked government employee ie Nurse I take objection to the idea that I was paid too much...

MarkG

The private sector can't just raise taxes to pay itself more.

scrubbedexpat091

Private sector can't just raise taxes to increase pay and since the consumer is cheap and won't pay more for things, companies have to keep cutting and cutting and cutting.

I agree private sector needs to up their wages but for a lot of sectors they can't because consumers won't pay more.

Look at posts here about airfare and the complaints people have about paying too much, if the airlines were to pay more people would fly less because fares would go up so airlines would have to reduce pay or staff or both to make up or the loss of revenue.

Same with hotels, people want to pay less and less and that creates difficulty for the hotel to raise pay because revenue is going up at the same rate as the costs, raise the rates and people go to your competitor down the street to pay 5 less per night.

I worked at a hotel next to a union hotel in California, the union hotel employees made good money and had been union since the 1980's, but it got to a point the revenue couldn't support those wages, because of competition rates couldn't be raised, so the hotel was shut down, torn down and turned into a parking lot.

Government employees have learned if they strike, the government caves in and they get what they want or close to it, the private sector employees don't have that same sort of luxury. Their employers can't just force customers to pay more like the government can.

Granted some employees are not as overpaid as others, nurses I wouldn't even really consider a government employee in BC, but when you have a basic admin or customer service job in gov't paying 15-20 per hour or more, and private sector paying min. wage or slightly above, there is a large discrepancy for the same type of job requiring the same basic skills and education.

Look at my job, the same job with the municipality pays double, we do the same exact thing, same education needed, they work no harder then I do, they may have it a little easier since their enforcement is automated and they don't have to get out and check every single car in the lot.

withabix

Being pedantic, public sector workers might get paid more than those in the private sector, but many of them probably don't earn it....

The only exception in my opinion in the UK are those who work in hospitals, although I have also witnessed massive amounts of skiving and ignoring buzzers in geriatric wards in the UK when my parents were terminally ill and I witnessed the comings and goings for several hours every day for many months.

My sister-in-law works for a certain public body based in Surrey and she says it is the cushiest number she has ever had...

bats

I've worked in public and private healthcare in the UK. My experience was that in the pay was about the same, 2 days more vacation in the NHS and the prospect of getting off on time or having a complete lunch hour was much greater in the NHS than private. Not to mention better terms and conditions for sick leave.

Former Lancastrian

I have been a public sector worker for the last 37 years if you include the British Army as being a public sector worker. Of the 3 main careers I have had (Army, Police Officer and CBSA) I can state that I joined none of them for the money. If you go back to the 50s, 60s and 70s very few wanted to work in the public sector as the pay was crap. Then lo and behold the unions started to negotiate better wages and benefits for the public sector workers and nobody could forecast what would happen 40 or 50 years down the road. Remember the Governments employ these workers and they agreed to the bargaining terms such as vacation time, overtime and severance pay.
Fast forward to today and we now start seeing the effects of these agreements.
Unsustainable pensions, banked sick days and severance being the main points.
So now the tables have turned and now the public sector workers are the villains.
How about private sector jobs and some of their practices. Minimum call out of 2 hours at $75 an hour for a job that might take only 20 minutes etc etc.
Of course public sector workers are easy prey due to them being lazy, underworked, overpaid and uneducated.
And the next member of the public who tells me Hey I pay your salary don't be surprised if I reply back Thanks and by the way you aint paying me enough

Almost Canadian

To quote Sarah Silverman. "Was it because you got grade Cs in high school?"

IIRC, it used to be that one gave up a "competitive salary" for job security and benefits.

Now they have better salaries, better job security and better benefits. Good luck to them. It people want a share of that pie too, they can always apply to join them.

Who has called them villains?

I have worked in both sectors too. Efficiency, IME, is far worse in the public sector. The organisations have no competition (can someone please explain to me why the Calgary Police Service run commercials?). They have no idea whether they are good, poor or average at what they are doing. One wonders how much people would pay them to do what they do if no taxes were paid and they had to justify their salaries to those that use them?

scrubbedexpat091

Unions don't really negotiate, they know they can strike and hold the government hostage, and then public pressure because of services not being available gets the government to agree to them to get services back up and running.

Government workers should not be permitted to be union in the first place.

Difference between private sector is if the amount being asked to provide a service is too much, the private service either lowers their price, or they go bust.

The government just raises the taxes on everyone or the tolls or whatever to make up for the increased wages.

The private sector if they got the same pay and benefits there would not be such an issue.

The younger generation like myself wasn't around in the 50,60,70's and all we have known is private sector pays poorly with no benefits or limited benefits and public employees = lots of benefits, better pay and all that.

And really unless you know someone on the inside working for the government, near impossible to even get a job with them. It's impossible to even get an interview or call back for anything related to a government job if you don't know someone on the inside.