The Review-Journal‘s Sunday Viewpoints section was given over today to an ostensible pro/con debate over public employee salaries. As per custom, the capitalist running dog position was given ample space, with a small portion left over for the city’s public employee union to protest that it’s feelings are being hurt by all the hoopla over demands to give up hard-won salary gains.
As usual when reading R-J opinions — whether on the editorial page or in the news columns — the trick is reading between the lines.
Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs Chief Steve Hill goes on at length about how government workers are still prospering at a time when private-sector employees are losing pay, benefits and even their jobs. (Many government employees have lost jobs, too, but why spoil a good narrative?) A representative passage:
Over the past several months we have all watched as elected officials — some of whom only lately have awakened to the real problem — and public employee union officials have tussled on the fringes of the compensation issue. While out-of-work Nevadans are trying to get by, the unions and local governments have been discussing how large a cost-of-living increase will be (on top of 4 percent, or 5 percent or 6 percent step increases). Or whether there should be uniform allowances. Or whether some public employees should pay an extra 0.5 percent toward their retirement.
On top of it all, unions are actually asking what they are going to get in return for these “concessions.”
The nerve of those bastards! To actually think that they should be able to rely on a legally binding contract negotiated in good faith and voted upon by the elected representatives of the people! What the hell are they thinking!
Oh, that’s right: They’re thinking that a deal is a deal, and that, unlike their private-sector brethren, they actually have some negotiating power. Why? Because they belong to a union, and that gives them enough power to negotiate with management, in this case, local government.
It’s clear the chamber doesn’t want anybody in the private sector to look around and see that those with union representation — be they cops, firefighters, government workers, culinary employees, etc. — are getting a much better deal these days than people who aren’t represented by unions. If that message got out, chamber members might actually have to negotiate with their employees rather than simply tell them how it’s going to be.
That’s the stuff of capitalist nightmares: If workers want to be sure to get a fair wage, decent benefits and the ability to fall back on a legally binding contract to enforce the same, their best bet is to join a union! If you don’t believe it, just re-read Hill’s Sunday screed!
Oh, and speaking of, here’s another passage from the piece:
Thousands upon thousands of hard-working men and women across the Valley have lost their jobs or had their pay and benefits reduced significantly. Those people are making real sacrifices. And it is the taxes from those who have struggled so much — many of whom are barely getting by themselves — that pay the salaries and benefits of the Valley’s public employees. How can those people help but be offended by the stance taken by the public employee unions?
Two things here: One, we see once again the strategy of the chamber is to scapegoat public workers to engender a sense of outrage at “them,” in order to keep those thousands upon thousands of hard-working men and women across the valley from realizing the obvious benefits of unionization.
Two, if there’s anything we should be offended by, it’s the way the business community has shirked paying its fair share of taxes in this state. The Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce, in particular, and the general business community, in general, has avoided a tax on profits or income that most other states impose. Sure, business pays property, sales and payroll taxes. But unlike, say, the gambling industry, which pays all those taxes and then some more on its gross win, businesses pay nothing on their incomes. And the state has suffered as a result.
That’s another thing they don’t want you to think about. And it’s another reason why our city’s cops, firefighters, teachers, and general government workers are being used as scapegoats by the chamber and its publishing partner, the Review-Journal.
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Very good article Steve. You bring up great points. Steve Hill keeps bringing up the Chamber of Commerce studies but he fails to take into account that the studies are not apples to apples. The hours worked by firefighters here in Las Vegas are considerably higher than those worked in other cities. It’s not a surprise that they make higher wages, they work more hours. Sometimes by more than 2000 hours in a year. The studies are based on Dept. of Labor numbers that are gross wages, not base salaries. Local Governments have short staffed so much that they have large overtime costs but when asked to hire more people they won’t. They want firefighters to work the same amount of hours but they just want to pay them less per hour to do it.
And a second point. Steve seems to forget that public employees all pay those same taxes that private employees pay. It’s not like we don’t contribute to the revenue in this state. I don’t see one member of the Chamber of Commerce asking public employees not to spend their money in the Chamber businesses. If they don’t want our funds just tell us. I’m sure someone would be willing to take it.
The new friend of the Chamber of Commerce seems to be Oscar B. Goodman.
Maybe he is looking to take over the Chamber so he can still have his $200 per appearance Showgirls!!!
I wonder what the Chamber would say if Goodman and Sisolak unilaterally reduced payments for contracted goods or services provided by Chamber members? Would they support the presumed lawsuit resulting from such a breach of contract or who they yell “CUT MORE!”
BTW, is Goodman and Sisolak et.al., calling for an eight percent cut to all contracted services provided by the private side? I haven’t seen any story asking local businesses to “take one for the team”.
Businesses don’t pay taxes, only people pay taxes. Raise taxes in any art of the economy and everyone pays those taxes. Case in point, the 3% room tax that was added in the last legislative session, the Casinos were all for it. Why becasue they don’t pay it, they only collect it and pass it on.