The showdown in Wisconsin has generated competing claims about whether state and local government bureaucrats are paid too much or paid too little compared to their private sector counterparts.
The data on total compensation clearly show a big advantage for state and local bureaucrats, largely because of lavish benefits (which is the problem that Governor Walker in Wisconsin is trying to fix). But the government unions argue that any advantage they receive disappears after the data is adjusted for factors such as education.
This is a fair point, so we need to find some objective measure that neutralizes all the possible differences. Fortunately, the Bureau of Labor Statistics has a Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, and this “JOLTS” data includes a measure of how often workers voluntarily leave job, and we can examine this data for different parts of the workforce.
Every labor economist, right or left, will agree that higher “quit rates” are much more likely in sectors that are underpaid and lower levels are much more likely in sectors where compensation is generous.
Not surprisingly, this data shows state and local bureaucrats are living on Easy Street. As the chart illustrates, private sector workers are more than three times as likely to quit their jobs.
This helps explain why the unions are treating the Wisconsin debate as if it was Custer’s Last Stand. The bureaucrats know they have comfortable sinecures and they are fighting to preserve their unfair privileges.
The only bit of semi-good news for Wisconsin taxpayers is that state and local bureaucrats are not as lavishly over-compensated as federal bureaucrats.
This Center for Freedom and Prosperity video looks at all of the data and reveals a pecking order. Federal bureaucrats are at the kings and queens of compensation. State and local bureaucrats are like the nobility. And private sector taxpayers are the serfs that worker harder and earn less, but nonetheless finance the entire racket.
The video closes with a very important point that the right pay level for many bureaucrats is zero. This is because they work for programs, departments, and agencies that should not exist.
[…] Labor’s data on voluntary quit rates definitely suggests that bureaucrats (both federal and state/local) have a big compensation advantage over workers in the private […]
[…] use tax revenues to finance genuine “public goods.” In reality, taxes often are used to funnel undeserved money to powerful constituencies such as state and local […]
[…] P.S. The WSJ editorial cited above mentioned the Labor Department’s JOLT data. Those numbers are also useful if you want proof that federal bureaucrats are overpaid, and you’ll also see that the same thing is true for state and local government employees. […]
[…] P.S. The WSJ editorial cited above mentioned the Labor Department’s JOLT data. Those numbers are also useful if you want proof that federal bureaucrats are overpaid, and you’ll also see that the same thing is true for state and local government employees. […]
[…] P.S. The WSJ editorial cited above mentioned the Labor Department’s JOLT data. Those numbers are also useful if you want proof that federal bureaucrats are overpaid, and you’ll also see that the same thing is true for state and local government employees. […]
[…] P.S. The WSJ editorial cited above mentioned the Labor Department’s JOLT data. Those numbers are also useful if you want proof that federal bureaucrats are overpaid, and you’ll also see that the same thing is true for state and local government employees. […]
[…] P.S. The WSJ editorial cited above mentioned the Labor Department’s JOLT data. Those numbers are also useful if you want proof that federal bureaucrats are overpaid, and you’ll also see that the same thing is true for state and local government employees. […]
[…] cierto, compartí los números sobre las tasas de abandono para los burócratas estatales y locales en 2011. La misma historia, […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] the way, I shared the numbers about quit rates for state and local bureaucrats back in 2011. Same story, though the compensation […]
[…] Y sino creéis que tienen sueldos excesivos, explicad entonces por qué no abandonan voluntariamente sus empleos en búsqueda de puestos en el sector productivo de la […]
[…] article is that teachers take a pay cut, on average, when they leave the profession. Along with the “JOLTS” data, that’s real-world evidence that teachers are getting paid more than counterparts in the […]
[…] article is that teachers take a pay cut, on average, when they leave the profession. Along with the “JOLTS” data, that’s real-world evidence that teachers are getting paid more than counterparts in the […]
My husband is a federal employee. And yes, the benefits are nice, but he makes HALF what he would make as a mechanical/nuclear engineer in the private sector–HALF. So, on 50% of what he SHOULD make for his extensive skill set and 25 years of experience, we maxed out in the retirement savings plan so that we could afford to retire someday. We bought houses that were smaller than we would have liked in good neighborhoods and did well with home appreciation and we drove our cars for a minimum of 10 years and didn’t buy new–we bought 2-3 years old with 35K miles–lots of life left, but no 10 grand depreciation penalty for that new car smell. We didn’t have children because we didn’t want them, but it also means that while we didn’t have child rearing expenses, we will be alone in our old age with no one to look after us but each other. These are choices we made so that we could have the lifestyle we wanted and retirement we planned for and worked hard to achieve. It’s NOT what you make, it’s what you keep–and we chose a lifestyle that allowed us to keep the maximum amount on 50% of the income he would have had in the private sector. We believe in honest public service and my husband works for the patriots in battle around to world to defend our freedom and makes sure the warfighter has the equipment s/he needs. It’s a noble calling and worth far more than a 50% raise to us–but my point is that not all government employees are useless slugs–but a lot of them are. Janitors are way overpaid at $30 an hour with benefits because they’ve been mopping floors for 20 years and if they mop well they get automatic raises and keep their job and benefits. We overpay the unskilled government workers and UNDERPAY the ones with vital skill sets. It’s senseless but there’s no political will to stop the waste and corruption.
[…] And if you don’t believe that they’re overpaid, then please explain why they don’t voluntarily leave their jobs for positions in the economy’s productive […]
[…] (such as New York, Washington, and Detroit) where spending decisions are driven by a desire to line the pockets of unionized bureaucrats rather than to provide services to […]
[…] that this isn’t true, but I always point out the data on voluntary quit rates, which are much higher in the private sector compared to government. Needless to say, this is because folks who get cushy government jobs know they’ve won the […]
[…] So where did all the money go? Beats me, though I’m going to take a wild guess that the country bureaucracy is now far bigger and getting paid much more. […]
[…] economics, the tax code, Europe’s fiscal crisis, Social Security reform, demographics, overpaid bureaucrats, healthcare economics, inequality, fiscal policy, and the Ryan budget […]
[…] I think the evidence for excessive bureaucratic compensation is ironclad, particularly if you look at “quit rates” by sector. […]
[…] I think the evidence for excessive bureaucratic compensation is ironclad, particularly if you look at “quit rates” by sector. […]
[…] also dug into the Department of Labor’s JOLTS data to debunk those who argue bureaucrats aren’t […]
[…] a bloated government means overpaid bureaucrats, both at the federal level and state level (and in other nations as […]
[…] a bloated government means overpaid bureaucrats, both at the federal level and state level (and in other nations as […]
[…] it also makes sense that state and local bureaucrats are far less likely to quit their jobs than folks in the productive sector of the economy. After all, how many people leave positions when […]
[…] that bureaucrats get paid more than people in the private sector. I’ve also dug into the Department of Labor’s JOLTS data to debunk those who argue bureaucrats aren’t overpaid. I’ve even showed that they work fewer […]
[…] also dug into the Department of Labor’s JOLTS data to debunk those who argue bureaucrats aren’t […]
[…] also dug into the Department of Labor’s JOLTS data to debunk those who argue bureaucrats aren’t […]
It also will include information on what would be part of that vision if a.
Most training centers cover communication classes, physiology classes, and actual doula classes.
) it instead focuses on YOUR VISION OF WHAT YOU DO WANT
(i.
[…] be surprised to learn from this data that bureaucrats at the federal, state, and local level are only about 1/3rd as likely to quit their jobs as workers in the private […]
[…] to the debate was to put together a chart based on the Labor Department’s JOLTS data, which shows that bureaucrats are far less likely to voluntarily leave their jobs than folks in the private sector, which is very strong evidence that they are being […]
Add to these depressing numbers the millions who are being hired by the unregulated Czars Obama has appointed to rule our lives. I agree with Bill Reynolds: Eliminate all of them and save us taxpayers the headache and cost.
[…] if all the data in the video doesn’t convince you, check out this chart. Share and […]
[…] if all the data in the video doesn’t convince you, check out this chart. Rate this:Share this:PrintEmailFacebookTwitterMoredeliciousDiggFarkLinkedInRedditStumbleUponLike […]
[…] Mitchel wrote a post a few months ago, but I just came across it recently. Although it’s old news now, it […]
It is obvious.
Government employees are dedicated and tireless public servants who sacrifice their time and energy to making this world a better place for the ungrateful proletariats who always cluttering up their daily routine.
Every American should take the time to personally go down to an IRS office between now and April 15th and deliver a heartfelt thank you to one of the service representatives.
They will certainly appreciate your devotion.
Because the private sector employee’s include mininum(sp)wage people who are constantly quitting job’s in search of something better.
Instead of job changes – instead use the US Dept of Labor stats, and compare such salaries to overall private industry.
The facts of high pay and benefits for state workers are easy to discover.
Just go to For Fed pay, Cato has the specific statistics
Thomas Jefferson
“I place economy among the first and most Important virtues – and debt as the greatest of dangers. To preserve our independence, we must not let our rulers load with perpetual debt. If we can prevent the Government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of caring for them, we will be happy.”
Good article … albeit most of the common sensed people already know the facts of the case. Simply put … How many people would let cockroaches live in their houses? Or, for that matter, flies, misquitos, mice, rats, or pests of any sort? Or how about letting theives move in and rape you at will … Enough said????? Where’s the Orkin Guy for these vermin???? It’s really that simple, lets not be Politically Correct, we know the problem and the solution … D O I T ! Get rid of them … NOW!