The O’Malley Furlough Sham

Today is Labor Day.  On Friday, while on the road attempting to earn a living, it seemed that every five minutes it was announced on the radio that Friday was the first “furlough” day for state employees.  Pretty interesting that it turned a three day weekend into a four day holiday.  However, it got me thinking …

If Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley was serious about saving the Maryland taxpayers a little of their hard earned cash, why does he have to “furlough” state workers at all.  He could have started by eliminating a few paid holidays.  Just think about it:

 

• Martin Luther King Day
• President’s Day
• Memorial Day
• Labor Day
• Columbus Day
• Veterans’ Day

Did I miss any?  There’s still Independence Day, Christmas Day and New Years Day that state employees could be paid for without having to work.

One thing that I know for sure, if the state can get its work done (I know, a BIG IF) while furloughing workers on regular work days, then the state has too many people on the payroll.  That’s common sense.  The state could really save some money by eliminating positions.

Another great way is to cut back on benefits.  How many sick days and personal days does the average state worker get?  Compare that to the private sector for starters.  They also get more as their seniority grows.  Think about it.  Do you have more relatives die with each year of service?

Of course, if ObamaCare (with public option) passes, all state workers should be placed on the public option.  It’s supposed to be so much cheaper, don’t you know.

In case you were wondering; no, I’m not being facetious.  I grew up in area dominated by federal workers.  I was always hearing people whine that “they should be paid comparably with the private sector”.  When asked if they would give up their retirement packages, benefits, and job security (inability to be fired) for a small bump in pay, they laughed.  Currently federal workers earn more than their private sector counterparts.  While I admittedly don’t know, I’d bet that state workers in Maryland fair near as well.  Yet, they produce nothing.  They create nothing.

If Martin O’Malley were serious about saving money, he would be cutting jobs while increasing service to the taxpayer.  Don’t think that it can be done?  Contact George Allen.  His team managed to do it while he was Virginia’s governor.  Ever since, Allen’s successors have been attempting to justify their growth of the state payroll.  Services sure haven’t gotten better.

Now I realize that we need government.  We need people to staff that government.  However, that does not mean that we can’t have a government that provides essential services in an efficient manner.  It surely doesn’t mean that public sector jobs are sacrosanct while the average taxpayer is fighting to pay his or her bills and handle an increasing tax burden.

The state’s payroll is only part of the answer.  Limiting state government to provide a climate for economic growth is another large part.  However, if the state limited itself, and was efficient at the services it did provide, the state’s payroll would shrink dramatically and  I’m willing to bey O’Malley would have a surplus – even under today’s tough economic conditions.

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