The headline in the Wisconsin State Journal screams: "State workers feeling pain of budget shortfall". Right - and I'm from the government and I'm here to help you.
When he first ran for Governor in 2002, Jim Doyle promised to reduce the state workforce by 10,000 positions. Let's see how that promise is playing out?
In March of 2003, when Doyle first took office, there were 71,000 full-time equivalent State of Wisconsin employees (including the University of Wisconsin system and University Hospital employees). In March of 2005, Wisconsin had 70,189 full-time equivalent employees. We currently have over 69,000. In other words, while literally every segment of the private sector has been slashing jobs, the State workforce is essentially stable.
So much for shared sacrifice.
It gets better.
Doyle's proposed 2009-11 budget doesn't use furloughs or job cuts to help close the budget shortfall. It also allows "domestic partners" of state employees to participate in the gravy train that is the state health care program and allows state university and faculty staff to unionize. That's not enough to mollify the army of people who work for the State though.
Many State employees are upset that the budget contains no money for salary increases beyond the 2% raise they received in December of 2007, the 1% raise the got last July and the 2% increase they're due in June of this year. They're also upset that they may have to contribute more towards their health insurance costs and see their state retirement contributions fall.
Welcome to the real world - sort of.
As someone who has just watched his company lay off good employees, slash it's dividend, institute drastic cost-cutting measures (like a pay freeze) and eliminate it's matching contribution to employee 401(k) plans, it's tough to be too sympathetic. Besides, I appreciate the fact that - unlike thousands of Wisconsinites - I still have a job. As a worker in the private sector, I just don't have the job security that comes from feeding at the public trough.
I take no pleasure in seeing anyone lose their job. At the same time, it's very clear that State government in Wisconsin is all about protecting the size of State government in Wisconsin. I mean, if the private sector has to cut back, shouldn't State government mirror what's going on in the real world.
In the private sector, the unmistakable message of today's economy is "figure out how to do more with less". When it comes to State government, the message is "figure out how to take more from those with less so that we can stay the same".
So much for shared sacrifice. Is it November of 2010 yet?
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