Boston Civil $ervants

www.bostonglobe.com...

1 in 4 city workers made $100,000 or more, a figure more than double the city’s median income.

Click on the link above to see salaries. BPS= Boston Public Schools.

Historically, public sector pay has never kept pace with private sector, it couldn't since it doesn't generate any income besides that which it taxes and salaries are just recycled taxes paid by the private sector.

Hey, middle class people, the ones you should hate are slightly better off middle class people. Just kidding! I present this thread not as a right/left, conservative/progressive, libertarian/socialist, Wall St/Main St, or now public/private us vs them distracting false paradigm. We can play the blame game all day long and there is certainly a lot of it to go around.

All I'm saying is that this is simply not sustainable. This can only work for a short period of time but it WILL eventually fall apart.

a reply to: METACOMET

Actually, based upon my observations and experience, this is sustainable for far longer than one might expect. In Italy, 1 of 2 workers works for the Government and has since the end of WWII. Employment with the Government is really nothing more than a large scale welfare program. I think it was Ben Franklin who commented that one of the primary tasks of Government is to provide employment for politicians idiot cousins.

I don't know about Boston, but in Texas, in most of the major metro areas, the City governments have, for all practical purposes been federalized, meaning that for every dollar in local tax revenues to the City budget, the Feds match a dollar or more through various subsidies to the Cities, either through school systems or Transit dollars. So the cities remain "sustainable" despite year over year dwindling property tax and sales tax revenues. To sweeten the pot and make the cities somewhat more sustainable, the Fed Department of Housing and Urban Development has, for years now, been bulldozing the large Metro area housing projects while at the same time, building huge apartment complexes along major streets outside the cities in the suburbs where they move their welfare free housing clients. This frees up real property in the cities for redevelopment construction of high end apartment high rise buildings and Town houses. This has had the effect of radically decreasing the public school populations which is why we see the controversies in cities such as Houston, Dallas, Chicago, etc. about school closings.

So, I wouldn't worry too much.

a reply to: TonyS

Thank you.

I know it's just another piss in the ocean, but the water is starting to look a little yellow, isn't it?

a reply to: METACOMET

Well it is indeed. From my perspective, the biggest problems are 1) the 17 Trillion in Debt and 2) the complete absence of any hope for a political solution.

The political class as a whole is completely hopeless. And I don't see any hope for any real change on the horizon. This years election will be a yawn with no meaningful results and 2016 is shaping up to be a one party/one horse race. If Hilary runs, she wins; if she does not, Elizabeth Warren will probably run and win. Either way, 8 more years of no change for the better.

And local politics is a complete no show. In all the major metro areas, one party dominates unopposed. And the rural districts are all but safe for one party or the other. Same bunch of hacks, different day.

originally posted by: METACOMET
www.bostonglobe.com...

1 in 4 city workers made $100,000 or more, a figure more than double the city’s median income.

Click on the link above to see salaries. BPS= Boston Public Schools.

Historically, public sector pay has never kept pace with private sector, it couldn't since it doesn't generate any income besides that which it taxes and salaries are just recycled taxes paid by the private sector.

Hey, middle class people, the ones you should hate are slightly better off middle class people. Just kidding! I present this thread not as a right/left, conservative/progressive, libertarian/socialist, Wall St/Main St, or now public/private us vs them distracting false paradigm. We can play the blame game all day long and there is certainly a lot of it to go around.

All I'm saying is that this is simply not sustainable. This can only work for a short period of time but it WILL eventually fall apart.

Massachusetts is one of the most corrupt states. When people get into office they get their relatives jobs as toll workers. Now you must be wondering why, why would anyone want to work as a lowly underpaid toll worker. It's an unskilled job, anyone can do it, pay must be very low.

They can make up to $100,000 being a toll collector.
www.examiner.com...

Some 410 turnpike toll workers set to lose their jobs in 2016 will get raises worth $24 million to sweeten their departure, under an agreement reached Friday night between their union and the state.

www.bostonglobe.com...

That is $58,000 raise per worker.