OK, just one more that I had lying around.
Maine’s Governor wants to cut state workers’ salaries by shifting 3% of their compensation from pay checks to pension payments. He calls it an increase in the employees contribution to the pension, but really it’s just so the state can save money by cutting workers’ pay. He wants to give that money to corporations as a $203 million tax break.
So again, we have a governor who wants to cut corporate taxes and have middle class state employees pay for it.
There is one state employee, however, who is exempt – the Governor.
Showing posts with label public employees. Show all posts
Showing posts with label public employees. Show all posts
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Adding some detail
There's a point that I didn't make clearly earlier.
Since public employees negotiate their compensation, and that compensation includes salary and benefits, all of the money in the pensions is the employees’ money. Not only because it is contractually owed to them, but because if it hadn’t gone into the pension fund it would have gone to the employees in their paychecks.
It isn’t state money or state support any more than the money in their weekly paycheck is. It's compensation. It is the employees’ money.
Except of course in New Jersey where the State just keeps the money for itself.
Since public employees negotiate their compensation, and that compensation includes salary and benefits, all of the money in the pensions is the employees’ money. Not only because it is contractually owed to them, but because if it hadn’t gone into the pension fund it would have gone to the employees in their paychecks.
It isn’t state money or state support any more than the money in their weekly paycheck is. It's compensation. It is the employees’ money.
Except of course in New Jersey where the State just keeps the money for itself.
There is a game being played
Governors, among others, who like to demonize public employee unions are playing a game. For years, public employees in many municipalities have taken pay cuts in order to preserve their benefits. Now, they are being attacked for having benefits that are too generous.
First you roll back wages then you attack the benefits so you can cut them too.
Even so, many unions have agreed to cuts to their benefits. Some are the only ones funding their pension because the state has stopped paying into it.
The states are in financial trouble because the economy tanked because Wall Street screwed up. Many states also have problems because of tax cuts for the wealthy. New Jersey’s Governor vetoed the extension of a tax on those making over $400,000 a year – then he cut half a billion dollars from public schools claiming the state couldn’t afford it and he blamed the teachers’ union.
It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that foretells economic catastrophe and is very good at bringing about the predicted results.
First you roll back wages then you attack the benefits so you can cut them too.
Even so, many unions have agreed to cuts to their benefits. Some are the only ones funding their pension because the state has stopped paying into it.
The states are in financial trouble because the economy tanked because Wall Street screwed up. Many states also have problems because of tax cuts for the wealthy. New Jersey’s Governor vetoed the extension of a tax on those making over $400,000 a year – then he cut half a billion dollars from public schools claiming the state couldn’t afford it and he blamed the teachers’ union.
It is a self-fulfilling prophecy that foretells economic catastrophe and is very good at bringing about the predicted results.
In case you didn't know
New Jersey public employees have taken cuts for years in order to maintain their benefits. The State promised them a pension so they would take lower pay. And they are not paid more than comparable private sector employees – when compared on education and experience they get less, in fact. They provide needed services, they pay taxes and they contribute to their pension (unlike the State).
Regardless of what anyone may say to the contrary, those are the facts.
The governor gave an almost $500 million tax cut to the richest fraction of 1% of state residents, cut $500 million dollars from education, deliberately cost the state $430 million in school funding and cancelled the job-creating commuter tunnel to New York City which also will cost the state around $270 million it has to pay back. Now he proposes more corporate tax cuts. The only cuts the people of New Jersey get are to services and health care.
There doesn’t seem to be any explanation for this, other than that it is somehow because the state needs money and jobs so we should take in less revenue and cut jobs – or something. None of this is good for the economy or the people of New Jersey.
Regardless of what anyone may say to the contrary, those are the facts.
The governor gave an almost $500 million tax cut to the richest fraction of 1% of state residents, cut $500 million dollars from education, deliberately cost the state $430 million in school funding and cancelled the job-creating commuter tunnel to New York City which also will cost the state around $270 million it has to pay back. Now he proposes more corporate tax cuts. The only cuts the people of New Jersey get are to services and health care.
There doesn’t seem to be any explanation for this, other than that it is somehow because the state needs money and jobs so we should take in less revenue and cut jobs – or something. None of this is good for the economy or the people of New Jersey.
Who's to blame?
If New Jersey hasn’t contributed to the state pension fund in decades, and the state is not allowed to run a deficit (they just short-change the unions instead), how can the pensions be responsible for the financial problems?
And since the state is responsible for investing the money that the union members did put into the pension fund because they kept paying into it (and the State loses the money in the process), how can the employees be responsible for the financial problems?
For years the union employees have taken pay cuts or no raises in exchange for state promises of pensions and other benefits, thereby saving the state money, so how can the employees be responsible for the financial problems?
In other words, since the state of New Jersey is directly responsible for the current problems, why do people keep blaming the unions?
And since the state is responsible for investing the money that the union members did put into the pension fund because they kept paying into it (and the State loses the money in the process), how can the employees be responsible for the financial problems?
For years the union employees have taken pay cuts or no raises in exchange for state promises of pensions and other benefits, thereby saving the state money, so how can the employees be responsible for the financial problems?
In other words, since the state of New Jersey is directly responsible for the current problems, why do people keep blaming the unions?
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