There seems to be a lot of anger directed at public sector workers these days and it is not coming solely from conservatives. The mainstream media has done a crack job of vilifying public workers by stressing those situations when a public employee has a "sweetheart deal" or receives benefits that seem somewhat egregious.
I think there is no question that some public employees are paid more than they should be. Most of the time, however, it is not the front line workers who earn the big bucks, it's the senior level managers and administrators -- some of which are political appointees. That said, I bet you could find more overpaid hedge managers, stock brokers or corporate executives and CEOs.
As is so par for the course in this nation, the public becomes angry at the those at the top of the food chain, but they take out their anger on those in the trenches. It upsets me to no end to hear people railing against teachers, patrolmen, firefighters, social workers, secretaries, janitors and all the other public workers who keep our system humming along.
Though I am now disabled and no longer work, in bygone days I was one of those public service workers. I was employed by state social welfare agencies in Arkansas and Missouri. At the beginning of my tenure, I was a Foster Care Worker. Later on, after receiving specialized training, I became a Child Abuse Investigator.
Back in those days -- from 1980 - 1990 -- our agency never received adequate funding. My coworkers and I had very important responsibilities: protecting the health and welfare of abused and neglected children. Yet, despite the needs of society in this area, we were grossly underpaid AND severely understaffed.
In my first year as a state social worker, I was paid only $100/month ABOVE the federal poverty line. In other words, if my monthly paycheck had been $100 less, I would have been eligible to apply for food stamps at my own agency!! The pay scale gradually increased, but I never earned more than $18,800 per year.
Yes, $18,800 meant something more in 1990, but not that much more.
Of course, my colleagues and I worked very, very hard for our pittance of pay. Over the decade, I worked in 4 different county offices (3 in Arkansas and 1 in Missouri). There was never full staffing in any of these offices.
For example, at my last stop, we had an investigation caseload that warranted 3 child abuse investigators. How many did we have? One - me. I maintained the caseload of 1.5 - 2 investigators and the rest of the child welfare staff (workers who lacked the special training that I had) picked up the rest of the caseload above their own.
There were many months in which I was assigned 35, 40, 50 or more investigations. (Back then, the average investigation took 2 - 3 days to complete.) The only way I could keep up -- I was ALWAYS behind, nonetheless -- was to work my 40 hour week PLUS nights and weekends. I also had to be on 24-hour call every other week and just about every holiday.
I had no social life whatsoever (which, in my case, was not important at all) and there were many long stretches when I rarely saw my wife. I was constantly on the go and, when on-call, I rarely experienced an uninterrupted night of sleep. All this work and responsibility for minuscule pay and heaps of public scorn.
So, I understand what public sector workers are going through in today's political climate. I've been there and then some.
I think there is no question that some public employees are paid more than they should be. Most of the time, however, it is not the front line workers who earn the big bucks, it's the senior level managers and administrators -- some of which are political appointees. That said, I bet you could find more overpaid hedge managers, stock brokers or corporate executives and CEOs.
As is so par for the course in this nation, the public becomes angry at the those at the top of the food chain, but they take out their anger on those in the trenches. It upsets me to no end to hear people railing against teachers, patrolmen, firefighters, social workers, secretaries, janitors and all the other public workers who keep our system humming along.
Though I am now disabled and no longer work, in bygone days I was one of those public service workers. I was employed by state social welfare agencies in Arkansas and Missouri. At the beginning of my tenure, I was a Foster Care Worker. Later on, after receiving specialized training, I became a Child Abuse Investigator.
Back in those days -- from 1980 - 1990 -- our agency never received adequate funding. My coworkers and I had very important responsibilities: protecting the health and welfare of abused and neglected children. Yet, despite the needs of society in this area, we were grossly underpaid AND severely understaffed.
In my first year as a state social worker, I was paid only $100/month ABOVE the federal poverty line. In other words, if my monthly paycheck had been $100 less, I would have been eligible to apply for food stamps at my own agency!! The pay scale gradually increased, but I never earned more than $18,800 per year.
Yes, $18,800 meant something more in 1990, but not that much more.
Of course, my colleagues and I worked very, very hard for our pittance of pay. Over the decade, I worked in 4 different county offices (3 in Arkansas and 1 in Missouri). There was never full staffing in any of these offices.
For example, at my last stop, we had an investigation caseload that warranted 3 child abuse investigators. How many did we have? One - me. I maintained the caseload of 1.5 - 2 investigators and the rest of the child welfare staff (workers who lacked the special training that I had) picked up the rest of the caseload above their own.
There were many months in which I was assigned 35, 40, 50 or more investigations. (Back then, the average investigation took 2 - 3 days to complete.) The only way I could keep up -- I was ALWAYS behind, nonetheless -- was to work my 40 hour week PLUS nights and weekends. I also had to be on 24-hour call every other week and just about every holiday.
I had no social life whatsoever (which, in my case, was not important at all) and there were many long stretches when I rarely saw my wife. I was constantly on the go and, when on-call, I rarely experienced an uninterrupted night of sleep. All this work and responsibility for minuscule pay and heaps of public scorn.
So, I understand what public sector workers are going through in today's political climate. I've been there and then some.
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