8/29/2003 09:46:00 AM (link)
It was bad enough that the Bush Administration took advantage of the "War on Terrorism" to deprive federal workers of their ability to form and join unions; now, Bush has decided to dramatically limit their raises for this year. The raises are so deeply cut that, at 2%, they do not cover the increases in either the employment price index (up 2.7% this year) or the consumer price index (up 2.1% this year) [source: BLS], which means that federal workers are effectively making less this year than last.
Of course, they are uniquely powerless to do anything about this, since they cannot join a union; the decision is made unilaterally and without negotiation. As with the decision to deprive them of collective bargaining rights, Bush has cited national security to justify the raise cut: "Such cost increases would threaten our efforts against terrorism," the NYT quotes Bush.
Now, here's a question: if your security is in the hands of federal employees -- as it is -- would you prefer that they be paid comfortably and have a voice in their working conditions, or would you reduce their pay to save money and inspire a sense of disinvestment by depriving them a voice at work?
powered by blogger.