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发帖数: 29846 | 1 http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2011-03-01-1Apublicworkers0
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Wisconsin is one of 41 states where public employees earn higher average pay
and benefits than private workers in the same state, a USA TODAY analysis
finds. Still, the compensation of Wisconsin's government workers ranks below
the national average for non-federal public employees and has increased
only slightly since 2000.
* Police watch over the group of protesters that remained in the
Wisconsin Capitol rotunda on Monday.
By Scott Olson, Getty Images
Police watch over the group of protesters that remained in the
Wisconsin Capitol rotunda on Monday.
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By Scott Olson, Getty Images
Police watch over the group of protesters that remained in the Wisconsin
Capitol rotunda on Monday.
The finding comes as the Midwestern state remains in the center of efforts
by several governors to reduce budget shortfalls in part by requiring state
and local government workers to pay more for health and retirement benefits.
The standoff reaches a crucial point today when Republican Gov. Scott Walker
presents a proposed budget for the year beginning July 1. He says layoffs
of state workers may begin if the Legislature does not adopt his proposal to
curb collective-bargaining rights of public workers and require them to pay
a higher share of the cost of benefits.
*
TABLE: Public, private workers compensation gap
*
WISCONSIN: Capitol locked, protesters remain inside
*
PHOTOS: Thousands rally for union rights
*
BUDGET BATTLES: Full coverage
The analysis of government data found that public employees' compensation
has grown faster than the earnings of private workers since 2000. Primary
cause: the rising value of benefits.
Wisconsin is typical. State, city and school district workers earned an
average of $50,774 in wages and benefits in 2009, about $1,800 more than in
the private sector. The state ranked 33rd in public employee compensation
among the states and Washington, D.C. It had ranked 20th in 2000.
In contrast, California's public employees enjoyed soaring compensation
throughout that state's decade-long budget crisis.
The analysis included full and part-time workers and did not adjust for
specific jobs, age, education or experience. In an earlier job-to-job
comparison, USA TODAY found that state and local government workers make
about the same salary as those in the private sector but get more generous
benefits.
Economist Jeffrey Keefe of the liberal Economic Policy Institute says the
analysis is misleading because it doesn't reflect factors such as education
that result in higher pay for public employees.
Key state-by-state findings:
•California. Public employee compensation rose 28% above the inflation
rate from 2000 to 2009 to an average of $71,385 in 2009.
•Nevada. Government employees earned an average of $17,815 more — or
35% — than private workers, the nation's biggest pay gap. The state's low-
paying private jobs in tourism were the cause, says Bob Potts of the Center
for Business and Economic Research at University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
• Texas. The state ranked last in benefits for public employees. The
state hasn't granted cost-of-living increases to most retirees since 2001.
Some states that limit the right of public employees to unionize — such as
Texas, Georgia and Virginia — pay less in compensation than the private
sector. Massachusetts and New Hampshire generally permit unions but pay less
than the private sector in those high-income states.
Compensation gap by state for public, private workers
State and local government workers earn more than private-sector workers in
41 states. Average compensation (including salaries and benefits) in 2009
and difference with private-sector workers:
Rank State Compensation Difference
1 District of Columbia $82,607 +$457
2 Connecticut $77,697 +$7,687
3 New Jersey $72,007 +$6,681
4 California $71,385 +$7,977
5 New York $71,282 +$1,699
6 Rhode Island $69,284 +$17,603
7 Nevada $68,785 +$17,815
8 Maryland $65,947 +$6,931
9 Massachusetts $62,562 —$4,688
10 Alaska $60,882 +$2,764
11 Illinois $60,274 +$485
12 Delaware $60,077 +$2,911
13 Hawaii $59,595 +$12,243
14 Washington $59,288 +$532
15 Michigan $58,801 +$6,436
16 Florida $58,749 +$9,099
17 Arizona $56,321 +$4,310
18 Minnesota $55,826 +$1,259
19 Virginia $55,705 —$2,328
20 Oregon $55,682 +$5,607
21 Pennsylvania $55,137 +$1,567
22 Colorado $54,184 —$3,391
23 Wyoming $53,460 +$3,116
24 South Carolina $52,591 +$7,590
25 Ohio $52,473 +$2,392
26 Louisiana $52,412 +$2,473
27 New Hampshire $52,181 —$1,876
28 Vermont $51,503 +$5,811
29 New Mexico $51,428 +$5,715
30 Texas $51,310 —$3,580
31 Alabama $50,999 +$5,001
32 North Carolina $50,902 +$1,857
33 Wisconsin $50,774 +$1,802
34 Iowa $50,394 +$6,178
35 Utah $50,149 +$2,611
36 Maine $49,850 +$4,912
37 Georgia $49,600 —$3,875
38 Indiana $49,157 +$1,183
39 Missouri $49,092 —$1,075
40 Nebraska $48,953 +$3,130
41 Kentucky $48,046 +$2,313
42 Arkansas $48,033 +$4,196
43 West Virginia $47,899 +$3,655
44 Tennessee $47,891 —$756
45 Montana $47,596 +$7,396
46 Oklahoma $47,258 +$1,667
47 Mississippi $46,375 +$4,713
48 Idaho $45,280 +$2,855
49 Kansas $44,803 —$3,229
50 North Dakota $43,619 +$389
51 South Dakota $41,684 +$1,909
Total United States $57,775 +$2,511
Sources: Bureau of Economic Analysis; USA TODAY analysis |
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