Collective Bargaining
on 02/28/2006 at 09:54 AM
Some things never change. My roommate Fred and I had the same degree, same graduation date; I worked in the private sector and he for the Navy in a ship design department. After two years, his salary was 50% higher than mine with the same job title, and yet he quit. He told me that there were five engineers in his department, but only enough work for about 1.5 engineers. He couldn’t stand the loafing, left and started his own company, where he has been very successful.
My college roommate also worked for the government, and he explained that in his experience, government departments “cutting hundreds of jobs” meant that positions in the organizational tables that had never been filled were taken off the T.O. for the moment. The positions were there only to justify the pay grade of the manager of the department and never actually had people in the slots. Nobody was ever actually fired for cause or reduction in force short of being convicted of felony theft from the government or not showing up for work. His impression was that attendance was more important than performance, which didn’t matter much once you were hired.
Where have you gone Teddy Roosevelt?
Yeah, but even the bureaucratic/government system has it’s hiarchy with the soldiers at the pits of benefits. (oops, my bias is showing)
I mean, a hundred years ago, unions had a purpose - but damn, enough is enough. Now the unions have nothing to do but imbezzle funds and strong arm the company into more comps. If it was just a straight pay for performance - maybe then we could straighten out Congress, the teachers, the military/industrial complex, the irs, the health care system, judges, and so on and so on and so on. First we need to stop the ‘protectionism’ aspect of the systems.
But then my feeling is that the ultimate of governmental waste is paying welfare. There can be (and are) programs to protect those individuals who really do need financial assistance to make it (elderly, disabled are first on my list) but to pay people to simply ?what? - be. Besides the encouragement for others to do-nothing - the program really does not encourage anyone to get off of it. Which is self-defeating. Feed people, house people, provide medical care when a disaster (job loss, illness, natural disaster strikes) but not just ‘because’.
The way to go is less government, less bureaucracies, less assistance, less entitlements, LESS.
It’s not where have you gone Teddy Roosevelt - It’s where has common sense and good judgement gone?
Question: How many underpaid, overworked government employees does it take to change a light bulb?
Answer: None. They contract it out to Dubai Pork World.
