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Home Front: Politix
So you want to be a millionaire? Work for feds!
2010-04-30
Makes you feel like a drone bee or a worker ant. You guys pay up and a little less whining please out there in flyover land. You are making too much money as it is. The din in Washington is giving us a migraine. And besides, it is the patriotic thing to do.
0For decades, public sector unions have peddled the fantasy that government employees were paid less than their counterparts in the private sector. In fact, the pay disparity is the other way around. Government workers, especially at the federal level, make salaries that are scandalously higher than those paid to private sector workers. And let's not forget private sector workers not only have to be sufficiently productive to earn their paychecks, they also must pay the taxes that support the more generous jobs in the public sector.

Data compiled by the Commerce Department's Bureau of Economic Analysis reveals the extent of the pay gap between federal and private workers. As of 2008, the average federal salary was $119,982, compared with $59,909 for the average private sector employee. In other words, the average federal bureaucrat makes twice as much as the average working taxpayer. Add the value of benefits like health care and pensions, and the gap grows even bigger. The average federal employee's benefits add $40,785 to his annual total compensation, whereas the average working taxpayer's benefits increase his total compensation by only $9,881. In other words, federal workers are paid on average salaries that are twice as generous as those in the private sector, and they receive benefits that are four times greater.

The situation is the same when state and local government compensation data is compared with that of the private sector. As the Cato Institute's Chris Edwards notes in the current issue of the Cato Journal, "The public sector pay advantage is most pronounced in benefits. Bureau of Economic Analysis data show that average compensation in the private sector was $59,909 in 2008, including $50,028 in wages and $9,881 in benefits. Average compensation in the public sector was $67,812, including $52,051 in wages and $15,761 in benefits." Those figures likely underestimate the true gap on the benefits side because the typical government employee gets a guaranteed defined benefit pension under very generous terms, while the private sector norm is a 401(K) defined contribution plan that is subject to the ups and downs of the economy.

With the federal deficit and national debt heading into the stratosphere, taxpayers can no longer afford to support such lucrative government compensation. Public sector pay and benefits at all levels should be reduced to make it comparable to the wages and benefits earned by the average working taxpayer. The first politician to propose a five-year plan for this purpose is likely to be cheered mightily by taxpayers!
Posted by:JohnQC

#19  I still think it's Barney Frank
Posted by: Frank G   2010-04-30 18:37  

#18  We frequently refer to 'Rantburg University' around here. I particularly enjoy seeing people like YRWR get an education ...
Posted by: Steve White   2010-04-30 16:10  

#17  What sickens me is not only do incompetent in-laws of the politically connected make so much and pay so little, it's the sanctimonious cant about their public service.

Mob turncoat Ron Previte earned more than $1million from the FBI for snitching out Skinny Joey Merlino, a penny ante Philly street thug. Somehow I don't think we got our money's worth and I am quite sure that Ron was not a college graduate who selflessly dedicated decades to the public good.
Posted by: regular joe   2010-04-30 14:57  

#16  I have a master's degree in mine technical specialty, I have worked for Uncle Sam for over 15 years brings home less than $90K for our family of 4.

You have a college education? Dude, you got ripped off.
Posted by: Ebbang Uluque6305   2010-04-30 12:46  

#15  I know a federal employee who worked for an agency. This person decided to leave the government and go into the private sector. The supervisor said: "You know you are leaving a life time job!"

An overly simplified example of revenue, profit, and costs relationships. Suppose a small company (assume a proprietorship) operates on a 5% profit margin (fairly modest). The small business owner realizes he/she has to fork out $1,000,000 in new costs to purchase (fill in the blank, e.g. buy health care insurance, new pollution device, green energy compliance, diversity training, a new machine, create a new job, pay new taxes, etc.). In order to pay for this new $1,000,000 in costs, the company must generate $1,000,000 / 0.05) = $20,000,000 in revenues. If the company is viable, it may be able to satisfy the requirement to spend this $1,000,000 or it might just go out of business and thus lose the benefit it creates to society by creating jobs (and wealth). The current crop of whiz kids in Washington either donÂ’t understand such oversimplified basic economics because they have never run a business or they just donÂ’t care. And that is the gist of part of the problem in Washington.
Posted by: JohnQC   2010-04-30 09:23  

#14  Maybe he is one of those losers that get paid $250. a week from a George Soros group.
I wonder if he used a government computer to post this? hmmm.

Yep... thats all we need. More government workers.
Simply genius. Why didn't China or the Soviet Union think of this?
Posted by: newc   2010-04-30 09:22  

#13  You bring up a good point Mr. LoveTheCock.com (aka Federal Employee). So let's examine that a bit more.

45% of Federal employees are college graduates vs 29% for the US overall. Yet the average Federal salary (only 45% college grads) is $79,197 ($119,982-$40,785) while the median full time salary for a bachelor's degree holder (includes the higher paid Fed employees who skew the numbers a bit) is $56,118 (2007, US Census pg. 9). But that 40% salary differential becomes an 80% differential when the $41K Fed benefit package is included vs the civilian package.

Mr. LoveTheCock.com,
Now that you were good enough to provide us with your salary ($90K), let's examine your personal situation and compare that with industry. The median mining engineer salary is $75,960. But, that data is skewed by the oil and gas industry salary of $97,840. Since I am going to assume you don't make your living producing oil and gas, the comparable civilian salary is $73K, or if your specialty is classical mineral mining - $69K.

But that is not the end of it. Now let's calculate your bennies. The average Fed bennies were $40,785. Of that $10K was in medical coverage expenses ($40B for 4M employees) and not tied to salary. The rest ($31K) is tied to salary (retirement, days off, ...). Your share of that $90k*($30.8/$79.2K) = $35.0k, for a total bennies package of $45.0k (medical + salary based) for an effective annual pay package of $135,000.

Do you still want to trade jobs with the (overpaid) civilian mining engineer who is making $73k plus $10-15K bennies (IFF he works for a company generous enough to contribute 2% into his 401K)? Not to mention risks of layoffs and the entire company going bust, for which the Feds seem compelled to do for the entire minerals and mining sector. Otherwise Mr. LoveTheCock.com, you come across a selfish, entitled, foul mouthed prick and a not very bright example of the species Dodo Federalis. But unlike the dodo, the Feds seem intent on dragging the entire country into first irrelevance, then extinction.

Oh, by the way, real personal income for Americans decreased by 3.2% last year. What was your Federal cost of living increase, Mr. LoveTheCock.com? (For the non Feds out there, it seemed to have been 3.9%, while national debt increased by $2.35 trillion.)

Posted by: ed   2010-04-30 08:02  

#12  I have worked for Uncle Sam for over 15 years brings home less than $90K for our family of 4.

really (Sarcastic sneer) I make 15,540 and have plenty so you make 5-3/4 more than me and still bitching? F**k Y*U, Rich Asshole.
Posted by: Redneck Jim   2010-04-30 07:12  

#11  The vast majority of federal employees have to have a college degree.

Maybe in the fishbowl of the Beltway with all those offices and shiny buildings. However, those government organizations which actually do work as oppose to 'administrate', the ratio is much smaller. One large sector of the government that is working even this day in Iraq and Afghanistan will have officers and senior NCOs with degrees, but the 'vast' number of everyone else in the 'ranks' are not. Of course, by your own style of discourse one would make a reasonable observation that you don't count those as 'real' employees. Considering that they 'serve', as in 'public servant', rather than lord over their fellow citizens, it's unlikely you could ever identify with them.
Posted by: Procopius2k   2010-04-30 07:04  

#10  I'm betting *** you rantburg **** without readers is a high schooler on dope or a union thug on whiskey. My evidence is the other comment in the sinktrap. I'd say he's a true troll.
Posted by: Nimble Spemble   2010-04-30 06:59  

#9  Yeah, but that's not the point, BrerRabbit, his needs are more. He is giving all his abilities allow, but his needs are greater.

No wonder he's angry!
Posted by: Bobby   2010-04-30 06:24  

#8  90 k per year puts "you" in the top 20% in the US.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Household_income_in_the_United_States

You can do simple math College Boy?
Posted by: BrerRabbit   2010-04-30 06:15  

#7  "Shuddup, serfs!"
Posted by: g(r)omgoru   2010-04-30 05:09  

#6  Hello, hateful NPR listener. Without pointing out the numerous spelling and usage errors in your college-educated post ("in mine technical specialty"??), I would like to say that the Washington Examiner said this, not Rantburg. We are just a little link aggregator and we put snarky comments inline. Actually, the low population here is rather nice.

Question: have you ever used the phrase "flyover territory" in a hateful manner? How did that make you feel?
Posted by: gromky   2010-04-30 04:52  

#5  I would be more than willing to be reimbursed for what I do as compared to the private sector

Well, what are you waiting for? If you had any brains you'd stay move to where the money is best.

I'll bet you wouldn't make it two steps in the private sector.

I used to work in a government job. I was actually pulled aside and told on more than one occasion to reduce my productivity so that I wouldn't give management any ideas. I'd say the average worker where I worked probably put out about a quarter of what one would do in the private sector if you counted all the breaks, gabbing, meetings, and long lunches.

And yes, I know that some government workers actually do work hard, but usually they don't have to since job descriptions are so narrow.

As for your point about the article suggesting that government workers don't pay taxes: Go back to school and learn to read. What the author is suggesting is that private workers have to pay the government workers out of their taxes. You pay taxes too, but it just makes you less expensive to the government. Every government worker probably takes about ten private workers to fund, and the government jobs just take away from the higher private sector productivity they would have doing the same job. If it was even necessary. It's a lose-lose situation. That's why government jobs are bad.
Posted by: gorb   2010-04-30 04:43  

#4  Actually I wonder when the government will follow industry and outsource their high paid workers to India.
Posted by: 3dc   2010-04-30 03:41  

#3  I take it that "*** you rantburg **** without readers " is another government worker parasite on the taxpayers?
Posted by: 3dc   2010-04-30 03:39  

#2  Looks like our feed to NPR has attracted our first NPR troll.

Awwww! How kewt.

I redacted his first comment but I left this one in in case anyone wanted a chew toy.
Posted by: badanov   2010-04-30 03:31  

#1   This is another prove that this crapy rantburg blog feed trash to readers!!!
What a bunch of crap. But unfortunately, ignorant unthinking readers will swallow this pap whole.
1. The vast majority of federal employees have to have a college degree. So comparing the average wages these college graduates earn to the average wages of private citizens is misleading.
2. Federal employees pay taxes just like everyone else. So if they earn more, they pay more. The author implies in the first paragraph that this isn't so.
3. The wages earned in our household as federal employee are less than what a private citizen in the same technical field would earn. This is partly made up by the benefits. I have a master's degree in mine technical specialty, I have worked for Uncle Sam for over 15 years brings home less than $90K for our family of 4. So we are not getting rich.
I would be more than willing to be reimbursed for what I do as compared to the private sector
**** you rantburg for pandering to the sh*t of America (the tea party and the bastard GOP)

Posted by: *** you rantburg **** without readers    2010-04-30 02:49  

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