http://globaleconomicanalysis.blogspot.com/ Anybody for the ....IMMEDIATE AND NECESSARY DOWNSIZING OF GOVT. ?????? The number of federal workers earning six-figure salaries has exploded during the recession, according to a USA TODAY analysis of federal salary data. Federal employees making salaries of $100,000 or more jumped from 14% to 19% of civil servants during the recession's first 18 months â and that's before overtime pay and bonuses are counted. Federal workers are enjoying an extraordinary boom time â in pay and hiring â during a recession that has cost 7.3 million jobs in the private sector. Defense Department civilian employees earning $150,000 or more increased from 1,868 in December 2007 to 10,100 in June 2009, the most recent figure available. When the recession started, the Transportation Department had only one person earning a salary of $170,000 or more. Eighteen months later, 1,690 employees had salaries above $170,000. The growth in six-figure salaries has pushed the average federal worker's pay to $71,206, compared with $40,331 in the private sector.
This is too much but a couple of things to point out. 1) all the lower end jobs, maintenance, janitors, most clerk positions etc⦠have all been moved to contractors. There are 4 contractors for every Fed employee. 2) Because they hire contractors they donât really hire that much and there are fewer than there were 15 years ago etc... 3) The average age of Fed employees is 47 because they donât hire anymore. 4) 2 The percentage of Feds with college degrees is double that of the working population in general because the jobs left are managing. 5) Federal employeeâs hired since 1984 donât have that gold plated retirement system and pension that still exists in most state and local governments. They have a 401k with a 5% match and they get 1% per year of service after 62 as a pension. Work 30 years get 30%. Not bad but not what most people think it is. You too can get there if you have a federal job; you just have to generally be prepared to wait 20 years till you raises get you in that area. The average age is 47 remember. It is a very attractive prospect in bad times but itâs the sort of job you have to need to try to get in the good times. I became a fed 5 years ago and took a 22% pay cut to do so. I went from 5 weeks vacation to 2 weeks for the first 3 years. I still make less than I did when I came in but I am looking at the long run.
I already linked that 9 1/2 hours ago. Dont you people ever read the previous posts to make sure we are not reading the same thing over and over? http://www.elitetrader.com/vb/showthread.php?s=&threadid=185315 Maybe you should write about something else that hasnt been written about yet. Like maybe a 10/5 C tax or some BS like that.
What's the big deal? Go to any major urban area and the going rate for experienced professionals such as lawyers, doctors, engineers, analysts, etc. is $100,000/year or more -- public or private.
Once upon a time there was a fake $70 Trillion Economy... $Over 30 Trillion was removed.... ALL must adjust.... .......................................................... That includes the size of the Govt..... ........................................................ What is important now ? To grow the "real" economy.....not the govt.... The govt. only exists because of the "real" economy.... Why ? Did the number of people shrink too ? No...just the opposite.... How ? Change the tax structure to a 10/5% C tax only ....no other taxes.... Free the risk side of the economy.... Establish a defragmented direct access electronic exchange system....easier to regulate....more trustworthy exchange that favors RETAIL structure....make it worldwide.... The more the RETAIL participants...the better....No taxes on any kind of securities....All public products have to trade on this defragmented exchange....first come first served....very low costs....all in the open.... Separate banking from the securities risk side.... Done..... Soon the tax take will dwarf the current system.... There will be labor shortages in the US....
the big deal is that the money needed to pay these six figure salaries must be taxed from those in the private sector.
............................. Amazing how people think.....isn't it... Even after over simplifying it..... ........................................................... Let's try one more time..... The Private Sector pays 100% for the cost of govt.... The total economy has been cut by 30/70's and getting worse by the govts' insistence on becoming even bigger than when there was a 70/70 economy..... Business must grow first....and govt. has yet to DOWNSIZE.... Ring a bell yet ? And all currently proposed policies changes points towards a much bigger govt.....exactly at the time the economy can least afford it.... The result ? Taxing more from a diminishing base.... This does not work.... This guarantees diminishing competitiveness in the world economy...especially versus BRIC....
If anyone thinks by cutting federal employee salaries from $100,000/year to $40,000/year and cutting taxes proportionally will somehow make the economy better, they are living in a fantasy land.
.......................................................... One more time.... Govt = 100% paid by US Business Booming economy = 70/70 Declining economy =40/70 Govt wants to stay at the same size and growing as if the economy was 70/70.... This means that the proportion of govt. to business ....which is an expense to business....the reason that govt. can exist in the first place.....must be dramatically reduced as well.... How to bring the economy back to 70/70 ...and more ? A 10/5 C tax only.....and a better capital formation process as described.... Only a politician wouldn't get this one..... Bandaid ...non sustainable handouts do nothing for sustainable business that are the pre-requisite for a govts. existence.... Just the way it is.... Another one.... There is an apple orchard.....= 70/70.... Business = apple producers..... Govt. = apple eaters..... 30% of the trees were cut down..... Govt. still wants to eat the same number of apples as before.... But they just do not have the trees...so they steal them from somebody else...because there are no more apples.... The govt. solution is to steal even more apples ...and cut down even more trees.... WILL NOT WORK.... The orchard has to be replanted and cultivated....not chopped down and burned....in order for there to be more apples... FOR EVERYONE
I'm one of them. I mean, the whole country seems to regard conservative white middle-aged men who earn upper-middle-class wages as the enemy. We have a target painted on our asses (and our checkbooks). Why not take a couple of hundred k per year in federal salary to pay all those extra taxes and fees the democrats are instituting? They pay my salary and I give them part of the money back in the form of taxs and fees. In return they get a good 10-minutes per week solid engineering work. The medical benefits are quite good. I'm staying on federal salary (augmented with a grant, more free money!) until the idiots are thrown out of office at which time I will return to industry. I did nearly the same thing during Clinton. Had a nice DoD grant and research salary while attending engineering school. When the government fucks me I try to hit them back. If you voted for Obama I want to thank you for paying my salary. The federal govt. paid off the student loans I incurred during school. If I recall correctly I originally used my student loan to buy a vintage car that raced in Lemans. All perfectly legal. I know some of you guys are working similar deals. Federal jobs have sabbaticals and I take a year off to work at a hedge fund or other financial work occasionally. Its like holding that federal job in reserve but making real money in a real job at the same time. I spent the last sabbatical on Dearborn St. working for that convertible bond trader dude. Man, what a tool. There is another option which is the feds will pay me my salary plus tuition, transportation costs and a nice stipend to attend post-graduate school for 2-years. You don't have to actually come to work at all during the 2-years. I think they require a 2-year commitment when you return from school (if you leave you must pay back the tuition). Think of it like your main trading nut. When there is good volatility you put your money up and trade. When the market is flat and risk/reward is unfavorable you pull your money back into something safe (simple interest if you are a piker.. like me). Ducking into a federal job for awhile is something like that. Besides, I did my small part in helping to kill bad guys and that offers some satisfaction of the variety that is hard to come by in finance. Of course, some will point out that if I was trading successfully why on earth would I need a salary? Valid question. I'm mostly all-in on a house. The friggin Money Pit. Anyway, I know you guys are going to hate on federal employees but you must admit that it is just people taking advantage of the current adminstration to make a few bucks. It won't last, nothing does.