“Please, Sir, may I have some more?” Oliver Twist
With unions it always comes down to “more”. There is always talk of fairness and solidarity. But every union breath demands More.
That's OK. The bosses want the most work for the least pay. Otherwise, the customers go where they get the cheaper prices. The stockholders want profits. Why shouldn’t union folks get More?
However, this concept falls apart with public employee unions. Firstly, these workers already have More. (See below.) Also, their purpose is not to generate profits. Rather, they provide a public benefit for their customers who are also their bosses: Us.
Our deal with them provides wonderful job security compared to the private sector. (I have never heard of a public worker being fired for anything short of a criminal conviction.)
They have a fat deal. It seems ungracious for them to want More, doesn’t it?
Let’s probe a little deeper. I found a complete BART salary report online. The median worker is Shayla M., a station agent on page 68. Her numbers are typical.
Her base salary is $62,573. Not bad for needing only a high school education.
She also got $19,320 in overtime. OK.
She got some money for vacation and bonuses: $3,710.
This means her gross pay was $85,603.
Now it gets better. BART gave her $16,295 toward her medical, dental and vision insurance. Her share was about $90 per month. Do you know any private sector worker with such a fat deal?
BART contributed $7,649 to her pension. How many private workers get any pension at all? VERY FEW.
This means her compensation easily exceeded $100,000.00. And she is on strike for More.
Here’s the salary data: http://www.mercurynews.com/salaries/bay-area?Entity=Bay%20Area%20Rapid%20Transit
The BART strike is costing us some $73 million each day. The best solution is to follow Chicago and Washington DC’s examples: transit workers–like air traffic controllers– are not allowed to strike.
Until this happens, union demands for More will continue to bled the public.
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