In most states, government employees retire with a full pension in their mid-50's. They contribute little or nothing toward their health care cost, and often get generous retirement benefits. They also enjoy incredible job security. In most states, it's far easier to divorce your spouse than to fire an underperforming government employee. Unfortunately, teachers are very much the same way!
These benefits aren't cheap. For government unions to win, taxes must rise. Government unions in Illinois were blatant about what they wanted. They protested outside the state capital shouting: "Where's the money?", "Give up the bucks!", and "Raise my taxes!". Can you believe that last one! Raise my taxes! What a bunch of greedy idiots! Raise my taxes!
Unfortunately, government employee benefits are driveing state and local governments into insolvency. Nationwide, state and local government retirement plans are $3 trillion in the red!
Locally, to get their fiscal house in order, our city needs to reform government benefits. Unions, however, do not want change. They do not want their members to have to retire at 65. They only want higher taxes to fund their wages and benefits.
This allegiance to government unions doesn't serve the taxpayers. Government benefits are also crowding out funds for street paving, water and sewer repairs, parks/recreations and other CIP projects. Government employee unions have become Political Bosses!
Public-sector unions' interest differ profoundly from their private-sector counterparts. They don't negotiate over how to divide profits; they negotiate for the government to spend more on their members. Unionized government employees enjoy benefits that few private-sector workers can dream of.
There was a time the working population was oppressed and needed someone or something to champion their cause. Today it is about greed and frivolous and shallow complaints. The structure of the hierarchy makes Bernie Madoff look like Santa Clause!
Union contracts typically give workers group identies instead of treating them as individuals. Unions do not have the resources to monitor each workers performance and tailor the contract accordingly. Even if they could, they would not want to do so. Unions want employees to view the union - not their individual achievements - as the source of their economic gains. As a result, union contracts typically base pay and promotions on seniority or detailed union job classifications. Unions rarely allow employees to base pay on individual performance or promote workers on the basis of individual ability.
Repealing the Davis-Bacon Act would save taxpayers $10.9 Billion. This Act requires the government to pay construction wages that average 22% above market rates. This shields unions from competition on federal construction projects. This Act will add $10.9 billion to the 2011 deficit. The Davis-Bacon Act requires federal contractors to overpay their workers. Suspending the Davis-Bacon Act would make each public construction dollar go 9.9% further. This would create more bridges and buildings at the same cost to taxpayers. It would also employ 155,000 more construction workers. This would mean hiring 5 workers at market rates instead of hiring 4 workers at a 22% premium.
Unions function as labor cartels. A labor cartel restricts the number of workers in a company or industry to drive up the remaining workers' wages... Companies or governments pass on the higher wages to the consumers and tax-payers through higher prices or taxes, and often companies/governments earn lower profits/funds to support services. Economic research finds that unions benefit their members but hurt consumers and tax-payers generally, and especially workers who are denied job opportunities.
Economist consistently find that unions decrease the number of jobs available in the economy. The vast majority of manufactoring jobs lost over the past three decades have been among union members - non-union manufacturing employment has risen. Research also shows that widespread unionization delays recovery from economic downturns.
Union contracts compress wages: They suppress the wages of more productive workers and raise the wages of the less competent. Unions redistribute wealth between workers. Everyone gets the same seniority-based raise regardless of how much or little he contributes, and this reduces wage inequality in unionized companies... But this increased equality comes at a cost to employers and governments. Often, the best workers will not work under union contracts that put a cap on their wages, so union firms have difficulty attracting and retaining employees.
You can't fire an employee based on wok ethics. Unions are all based on senority, not work ethics. Unions protect the lazy worker and prevent the hard worker from moving up and getting what they deserve.
Unions have gained the power to impede our local governments ability to thrive! Our local government is in desperate trouble, yet the unions are unwilling to bend or compromise in order to help the city survive or recover. Local governments find themeselves left very inflexible when the have union contracts to abide by. Governments have trouble weeding out ineffective employees if they belong to unions. Unionized workers become so comfortable and protected that they lose incentive to work hard for the tax-payers.
Unions protect poorly performing workers, and they usually push for larger staffing levels than required! You wait and see... this is exactly what the police and fire departments are going for!
Public service unions have a good deal. There are no consumers or competition with which to discipline their inefficient and wasteful labor practices!
Why should we the citizens be hurled into the chains of unions; when we are trying to shed the chains of a corrupt local government!
VOTE NO!
For the Proposed City Income Tax Increase
Force the hands of our elected councilmen to reform the union's contracts on wages and benefits!
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