Your Thoughs on Gov Scott?

[als2052]

Just curious...looking like a one termer to me...

 

[85vette]

He's not well recieved in the Tallahassee area what with all us Govt' employees. I'll probably have to retire early to keep him from plundering my money....I understand though....if others before him had done what they needed to do we wouldn't be in this situation now.:banghead:

 

[Rich Z]

Heck his story line about state workers is just nonsensical. Saying that they make more than the private sector and need to bring their salaries and benefits down to the private sector's level is hogwash. Unless you are in the upper levels of state government, the reason you have the job is because you are willing to make less because the benefits package is worth more to you and you are willing to take the cut in pay. Unless things have changed drastically from the time I worked in state government, this was pretty much the rule across the board. You can't just take an average across the board of salaries simply because nearly all positions in state government are professional or clerical in nature. You can't compare that with an average in the private sector that has a large bulk of minimum wage jobs doing manual labor, being cashiers, waitresses and anything else that doesn't have equivalent low scale paying jobs in state government. So this apparently is just smoke and mirrors, because as a businessman, he HAS to know this.

Seriously, why would anyone have spent the kind of money he did to become governor? If he is truly a business man, then what kind of business decision was this for him? I'm thinking that maybe some one (or ones) in state government pissed him off a while back and this is now payback time. You know, like if some store employee pisses off some rich guy and he BUYS the company just so he can fire the dude. That sort of thing.....

 

[Z06 Rocket]

Heck his story line about state workers is just nonsensical. Saying that they make more than the private sector and need to bring their salaries and benefits down to the private sector's level is hogwash. Unless you are in the upper levels of state government, the reason you have the job is because you are willing to make less because the benefits package is worth more to you and you are willing to take the cut in pay. Unless things have changed drastically from the time I worked in state government, this was pretty much the rule across the board. You can't just take an average across the board of salaries simply because nearly all positions in state government are professional or clerical in nature. You can't compare that with an average in the private sector that has a large bulk of minimum wage jobs doing manual labor, being cashiers, waitresses and anything else that doesn't have equivalent low scale paying jobs in state government. So this apparently is just smoke and mirrors, because as a businessman, he HAS to know this.

Seriously, why would anyone have spent the kind of money he did to become governor? If he is truly a business man, then what kind of business decision was this for him? I'm thinking that maybe some one (or ones) in state government pissed him off a while back and this is now payback time. You know, like if some store employee pisses off some rich guy and he BUYS the company just so he can fire the dude. That sort of thing.....

Nope nothings changed. The job is supposed to be a solid one that is one of the last to be cut or laid off, and the flip side is that you get less pay with that security.

If you want to know who pissed him off, just think back to the investigation of corruption/theft/fraud/etc with the hospital money. The state and police.

 

[Shadow]

Let's not forget that the tax cuts and at least talk of state reduction, was started well before Scott took office.:yesnod:

Unfortunately, that's all it was...lip service.:thumbsdown:
No one was willing to make the unpopular decisions that needed to be made.

Now we have someone in office that's actually doing what has been "talked about" for years and everybody's getting upset.

These are not easy decisions, but necessary.
What he's proposing needed to be done decades ago.
Out of control spending, and government waste is going to bankrupt both the state and nation if we don't reign it in NOW!

A governemt job has never been and should never be, considered a job for life:NoNo:
This type of thought promotes exactly what most of us despise.

We've all heard the comment "typical government employee" (you know, the 4 guys hanging on one shovel while one person digs a hole).

We've all seen it as well.
If you're one of a dozen that haven't, just go to the DMV. You'll have your fill in short order!

People should enter goverment employment because they believe in it, they want to do the job, or to gain experience.
Not because it's "cushy" "easy" or "guaranteed":nonod:

Lately, it seems it's some goverment employment has become a place for those "less motivated" and possibly not quite as adept, as thier counterparts in the private sector

Government employment has never been nor should it be now, about the $$$$$.
If you want to make good $$$$, get into the public sector and take your chances, or go to work for yourself, and again, take your chances.

I entered law enforcement not for the benefits, or the $$$, but because it was what I felt I wanted to do. The same reason people (myself included) used to enter the military for.
Nowdays, even that's changed for the most part.

Government Service is about just that....SERVICE!
Those that choose the field, do so with full disclosure.

The benefit cuts likely will not effect the previous government workers.
It will impact those new hires coming on board after a certain date.
So be it.

While I'll agree that many rank and file STATE workers could use a raise, the benefit package is pretty sweet.

And under the proposals, it might actually survive!
You can't continue to fill a never ending hole. Eventually, you'll run out of dirt!

Anyone whose spent over a few years in any government agency, and isn't blind to the facts, will realize that the vast majority of government agencies from state to local, are top heavy with administration and redundancy.

The Dept. of Financial Services and the Dept of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs are two (2) prime examples.

Both are relatifvely little more than retirement centers for other agencies top brass, and do little to truly assist the public, or control thier assignees.

And there's so much more.....It's time for some serious cuts!

As for any vendetta he may have, if that's the case, it will certainly show it's ugly head at some point.

The rail decision?
I'm with him for now.

Let's get our freaking roadway system in order before we start setting up high speed rails!

And why would I want to obligate the state any further to Federal control?
No thanks.:thumbsdown:

 

[Shadow]

Nope nothings changed. The job is supposed to be a solid one that is one of the last to be cut or laid off, and the flip side is that you get less pay with that security.

How do you figure that?
Other than emergency services, I've never considered a government job a job for life:nonod:
Why would we wnat that to happen?
To do so fosters laziness and ineptitude on a massive scale:thumbsdown:

If you want to know who pissed him off, just think back to the investigation of corruption/theft/fraud/etc with the hospital money. The state and police.

I see where you're coming from and hope you're wrong.
If not, it'll become obvious at some point.

 

[Shadow]

Heck his story line about state workers is just nonsensical. Saying that they make more than the private sector and need to bring their salaries and benefits down to the private sector's level is hogwash.

It's funny you mention that. Some years back, there was a HUGE study on that very same topic. Pay parity between theprivate sector and public sector.
That's when the huge pay raises started taking effect and the benefit packages increased.
The big difference and something that was left out of the equation, was as Rocket mentioned, SECURITY!
You have little if any in the private sector, you buy your own benes, own your own car, purchase your own fuel......blah blah blah.....and it's PERFORMANCE DRIVEN!
In the government sector, not so much so.
If an agency fails to perform, where are you going to go? What can you do?
If a private sector employee/firm fails to perform, they're out of business.
For those risks, they sometimes make more $$$.

To compare a division major or section manager with an upper level manager of a fortune 500 company is laughable.
In some counties, line LEO's with less than 5 years on the job, are making more than the private sector owners of some companies.
Administrators for most goverment agencies are making more (wiothout the inherrent risk associated with LE/Fire Rescue) than many of thier counterparts in the private sector these days.
Maybe it's that "pay parity" study again?
Maybe it's time for a new one:thumbsup:

Unless you are in the upper levels of state government, the reason you have the job is because you are willing to make less because the benefits package is worth more to you and you are willing to take the cut in pay.

For a lot of these state workers I run into, it's not a cut in pay at all.
It's a pay check, period.
Heck, many of them act like they hate thier jobs?
But they won't dare venture out into the real world.

For others, such as the retirees, it's less than they made, but they're already retired!
This is nothing more than a cake job for them, a bump to thier retirement (depending on whether it's a state or local retirement program) and beer money:lmao:

Unless things have changed drastically from the time I worked in state government, this was pretty much the rule across the board. You can't just take an average across the board of salaries simply because nearly all positions in state government are professional or clerical in nature.

Unfortunatley, state goverment jobs are usually classifed in levels, rather than description for pay purposes.
I'm not sure I'd classify most of them as professional. Maybe more technical and clerical?

I guess it could go either way?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Professional

A professional is a member of a vocation founded upon specialised educational training.

The word professional traditionally means a person who has obtained a degree in a professional field. The term professional is used more generally to denote a white collar working person, or a person who performs commercially in a field typically reserved for hobbyists or amateurs.

In western nations, such as the United States, the term commonly describes highly educated, mostly salaried workers, who enjoy considerable work autonomy, a comfortable salary, and are commonly engaged in creative and intellectually challenging work.[1][2][3][4] Less technically, it may also refer to a person having impressive competence in a particular activity.[5]

Because of the personal and confidential nature of many professional services and thus the necessity to place a great deal of trust in them, most professionals are held up to strict ethical and moral regulations.

Yeah, that sounds like most state government employees to me:lmao::lmao:

This one was funny:

A professional is a person that is paid for what they do. Qualifications have little to do with being a professional as the world's "oldest profession" is strictly a monetary gain career. An amateur maybe more qualified than a professional but they are not paid, thus they are an amateur.

:lmao:
anyway. back on topic...

You can't compare that with an average in the private sector that has a large bulk of minimum wage jobs doing manual labor, being cashiers, waitresses and anything else that doesn't have equivalent low scale paying jobs in state government. So this apparently is just smoke and mirrors, because as a businessman, he HAS to know this.

I'll defer back to my previous comment on the pay parity study.
The study included comperable jobs in the public and private sector:thumbsup:

Seriously, why would anyone have spent the kind of money he did to become governor? If he is truly a business man, then what kind of business decision was this for him?

The same reason those before him did.
The same reason those that campaign for any public office including that of the President, do.

It's either a desire to serve, or power and prestige.
Since they all enter the races for altruistic purposes (I just want to serve our people:ack2 we won't knwo for a while what his true agenda is.

Im thinking that maybe some one (or ones) in state government pissed him off a while back and this is now payback time. You know, like if some store employee pisses off some rich guy and he BUYS the company just so he can fire the dude. That sort of thing.....

You could be right:thumbsup:

 

[THOR]

It is interesting to me how society swings their opinion of someone. I am not a fan of the governor but it's more a personality issue than anything else. If a person has tons of cash thrown his way for an election, we say the lobbyist put him into office. If a person spends a significant amount of his cash, we say he bought his way into the office. For whatever reason Gov. Scott spent his cash, it truly is his own business.
He did derail the high speed train and he may be correct in that the Florida infrastructure would not be able to support it long term nor be profitable. Yes, it would create jobs temporarily but so what.
I thinks he wants the state to be fiscally sound and that takes saying NO to alot of things we would like but no longer can afford or support.
He has a big job and I'm willing let him shake it out over his first term and see what develops.
If anything, his abrasive personality and arrogance may be his downfall.
Just my humble .02 worth.

 

[Kap142]

Probably a bit early to judge too much. I think he's way off base on his ideas for the FL retirement system. I think the High Speed Rail can not and will not (honestly) pay for itself as they all seem to end up in the red with the state (us) picking up the tab. Correct me if I'm wrong and I will view things differently but has the Miami-Dade Tri Rail ever paid for itself or are we still running the tab on that one. I know Amtrack does not pay for itself.

At this point in time he has one plus vote from me and one damn big minus vote.

Gotta watch this for a while.

 

[als2052]

When I compare my current state job with my previous private sector position, I find myself working twice as hard now...and job security where I am is only a myth...

 

[Shadow]

It is interesting to me how society swings their opinion of someone. I am not a fan of the governor but it's more a personality issue than anything else. If a person has tons of cash thrown his way for an election, we say the lobbyist put him into office. If a person spends a significant amount of his cash, we say he bought his way into the office. For whatever reason Gov. Scott spent his cash, it truly is his own business.
He did derail the high speed train and he may be correct in that the Florida infrastructure would not be able to support it long term nor be profitable. Yes, it would create jobs temporarily but so what.
I thinks he wants the state to be fiscally sound and that takes saying NO to alot of things we would like but no longer can afford or support.
He has a big job and I'm willing let him shake it out over his first term and see what develops.
If anything, his abrasive personality and arrogance may be his downfall.
Just my humble .02 worth.

Well said Mark:thumbsup:
We gripe about campaign reform and special interest, then gripe when someone spends thier own money:rofl1:

I almost wish we could run "free" elections and make mud slinging illegal and punishable by death:lmao:
Then, maybe we'd get some real candidates.

As far as the man, I'm not all that impressed by him.
Then again, I wasn't at all impressed with his opponent either.

As far as a business man, hell, I wish I had half the savvy he does!

Probably a bit early to judge too much. I think he's way off base on his ideas for the FL retirement system. I think the High Speed Rail can not and will not (honestly) pay for itself as they all seem to end up in the red with the state (us) picking up the tab. Correct me if I'm wrong and I will view things differently but has the Miami-Dade Tri Rail ever paid for itself or are we still running the tab on that one. I know Amtrack does not pay for itself.

At this point in time he has one plus vote from me and one damn big minus vote.

Gotta watch this for a while.

The problem is, the retirement system in it's present form, can't support itself indefinately.
Gonna definately have to watch what happens here.

I agree with you 100% on the rail.
If we were going to put in a rail system, I'd rather see it go from say Miami to Orlando, or points North (Jacksonville?) with a stop in Orlando.

Hell, getting to Tampa is a piece of cake from O-town:thumbsup:
Getting up and down the state, that's a much bigger PITA IMO-especially south florida and I95!

When I compare my current state job with my previous private sector position, I find myself working twice as hard now...and job security where I am is only a myth...

That's an interesting observation.
I don't know what you do or how it compares to what you did in the private sector.

What I do know, is owning a business, I work probably 3x's as hard and a longer, than I ever did as a Deputy Sheriff or Police Officer.
And I really enjoyed the job so I busted my a$$ as a cop!

Now, it's 18-22 hour days as a routine, 6-7 days a week!

It's 1:30am and I'm up.
I'll leave the site in a few minutes and go back to doing paperwork.
I'll be up again (if I go to bed?) between 4-5 am and start doing more paperwork.

Sometime during the day, I'll hit the road, do what I do, then drag my a$$ in the house between 8-11 pm. A brief meal, and back to the computer.

As a cop, with the occasional exception of "hurricane duty" or one of those days when all hell broke loose, I woke up at 5am, dressed and on my motorcycle by 6.
Did whatever had to be done in the morning then hit the office for some admin time.

After that, around 12, I'd head out for a quick patrol then find a place to eat.
40 minutes later, back on the bike and back on patrol.
Off at 3pm and home by 3:05 :lmao:

Nope, private enterprise is definately more "consuming" than government duty ever was IMO.

And the pay?
IDK...the company makes decent $$$, but by the time servers are paid, taxes, healthcare, supplies, phones, fuel, insurance, and all the other chit that goes along with it is paid for, if I'm lucky, I'm in the 30k range.

As a Deputy, I'd be looking at 50k easy, with a take home car and/or motorcycle, and all my bene's paid for by the taxpayer:yesnod:

For me, government employment was a piece of cake. It had it's inherrent risks, but overall, a piece of cake.:yesnod:

 

[RevXtreme 1]

Scott has a mess to deal with coming in at this hour of uncertainy so I wish him well. If he can run it like a business, and this will take time to see results, then I am behind him. If he becomes a typical politician then boot him out next election.

On the rail, I agree on Miami to Jax, etc. Can't see enough use to justify the albatross around the neck it may become though as we are a car owning state and NOT like NY city residents that live with public transportation as the only real way to get around.

 

[mickeystoysz16]

When I compare my current state job with my previous private sector position, I find myself working twice as hard now...and job security where I am is only a myth...

I think that is ture of any position public and private. I have been both a goverment employee and a private sector employee and have found there is no "security". I think it is time to start my own business.

 

[Z06 Rocket]

The problem is, the retirement system in it's present form, can't support itself indefinately.
Gonna definately have to watch what happens here.

FRS has been in the black (in a very big way) for a very long time. It is one of the top three producing retirement systems in the country. This is one of the first years ever that they had a loss. In an economy like this there will be losses, they just have to hold on. It will recover. The cuts are unnecessary and a knee jerk reaction to try and stabilize his voter base. He claimes that he is a business man, and if there is anything to know about him it's that he gets his investors a return. He says that the citzens are his investors, and he is the CEO who will get them a return. I feel that the government employees are part of that investor group who need a return too.

They (police, fire, teachers, and thousands of other employees) have not received a raise (even a COLA raise) for the last 3-4 or 5 years. That, combined with a decrease of 5% or more of salary to contribute to retirement is quite a hit. Figure 2% COLA each year for four years, 8%, plus the 5% cut, is now 13% less pay. Additionally the fact that he wants cops to work 30-35 years (instead of 20-25 years for 75%) before collecting only 50% retirement is insane. Cops have more stress and statistically live much less time that most other professions. In his world he wants the cops/firefighters to work longer for less, then finally start earning only to die off (ie less payout after 35 years of paying in).

What I do know, is owning a business, I work probably 3x's as hard and a longer, than I ever did as a Deputy Sheriff or Police Officer.
And I really enjoyed the job so I busted my a$$ as a cop!

Now, it's 18-22 hour days as a routine, 6-7 days a week!

It's 1:30am and I'm up.
I'll leave the site in a few minutes and go back to doing paperwork.
I'll be up again (if I go to bed?) between 4-5 am and start doing more paperwork.

Sometime during the day, I'll hit the road, do what I do, then drag my a$$ in the house between 8-11 pm. A brief meal, and back to the computer.

As a cop, with the occasional exception of "hurricane duty" or one of those days when all hell broke loose, I woke up at 5am, dressed and on my motorcycle by 6.
Did whatever had to be done in the morning then hit the office for some admin time.

After that, around 12, I'd head out for a quick patrol then find a place to eat.
40 minutes later, back on the bike and back on patrol.
Off at 3pm and home by 3:05 :lmao:

Nope, private enterprise is definately more "consuming" than government duty ever was IMO.

And the pay?
IDK...the company makes decent $$$, but by the time servers are paid, taxes, healthcare, supplies, phones, fuel, insurance, and all the other chit that goes along with it is paid for, if I'm lucky, I'm in the 30k range.

As a Deputy, I'd be looking at 50k easy, with a take home car and/or motorcycle, and all my bene's paid for by the taxpayer:yesnod:

For me, government employment was a piece of cake. It had it's inherrent risks, but overall, a piece of cake.:yesnod:

I'm not sure where you worked but being a cop is never a "piece of cake". I won't even mention all the obvious things such as the requirement to take the abuse each and every day from the angry citizens who see the worlds problems as being the officer standing in front of them (with a smile) or possibly face discipline if you speak out. Court time and standby keep the police from having a "normal" life. Just ask anyone who has completed a study showing that police have one of the highest divorce rates in the government sector. The stress of the job (both mentally and on the life schedule) add up in a great big way. We also have the possibility that a cop will be shot and killed, hit and killed, or simply crash and die, - a fire fighter has similiar life threatening risks, and teachers have shooters on the mind as well (look at the VT Hokies shooting as the most severe - but not most recent - Columbine HS, and countless others) while payinig off 60k plus in college loans while at the bottom of the salary scale.

I know having a private sector job can be stressful, and that owning your own business can be even more stressful,, but the job security in the government sector was the benefit that was a "solid" benefit up till now. It has been incorrectly referred to as a life time job, but that is an exaggeration to say the least. The job is only a full career to those who put forth the effort. The job can and does end early for the people who mess up (just look at the headlines - they love printing stories about police / ff / teachers who get in trouble) when the same thing does not apply to the private sector.

Both private and gov sector jobs have plusses and minuses. The plus for gov was job security until now.

 

[Bob K]

The cuts are unnecessary and a knee jerk reaction to try and stabilize his voter base. He claimes that he is a business man, and if there is anything to know about him it's that he gets his investors a return. He says that the citzens are his investors, and he is the CEO who will get them a return. I feel that the government employees are part of that investor group who need a return too.

Question. If cuts aren't made how do we get out of this mess? The following is from Reuters. Is Florida in the red?

"In addition to killing jobs, the governor's budget slashes funding for Florida's children, cuts disability programs for the most vulnerable in our society, and slashes veterans funding while at the same time more than doubling spending on his personal office," Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith said in a news release. "This budget from the governor is a frontal assault on the quality of life of every Floridian and will not create a single job nor spur our economy forward; instead it takes us further into the economic ditch."

 

[Shadow]

Question. If cuts aren't made how do we get out of this mess? The following is from Reuters. Is Florida in the red?

"In addition to killing jobs, the governor's budget slashes funding for Florida's children, cuts disability programs for the most vulnerable in our society, and slashes veterans funding while at the same time more than doubling spending on his personal office," Florida Democratic Party Chairman Rod Smith said in a news release. "This budget from the governor is a frontal assault on the quality of life of every Floridian and will not create a single job nor spur our economy forward; instead it takes us further into the economic ditch."

We have to make cuts across the board, including his office.
This really is not a democrat or repblican issue.
It's a matter of fiscal responsibility.

 

[Bob K]

We have to make cuts across the board, including his office.
This really is not a democrat or repblican issue.
It's a matter of fiscal responsibility.

I know it's not a Rep or Dem issue. I think Z06 said that cuts were not necessary. That's why I asked him the question. From what I've read Fl is in debt and I was just wondering how we get out of debt without cuts.

The copy and paste I did was just to show another opinion which is different from mine and it seems to reflect his thinking. :shrug01:

 

[Shadow]

FRS has been in the black (in a very big way) for a very long time. It is one of the top three producing retirement systems in the country. This is one of the first years ever that they had a loss. In an economy like this there will be losses, they just have to hold on. It will recover.

The last I read (again, this was years ago), the system really couldn't support itself (under the old, non-contributory state system).

Under the present system, yes, in this economy which is where we have to live at the moment, the system was not going to support itself due to the overaggressive and somewhat risky investments previously made.
Sure it can and probably will survive. I hope so for those already in the new programs.
Time will tell.

The cuts are unnecessary and a knee jerk reaction to try and stabilize his voter base. He claimes that he is a business man, and if there is anything to know about him it's that he gets his investors a return. He says that the citzens are his investors, and he is the CEO who will get them a return. I feel that the government employees are part of that investor group who need a return too.

This is where I disagree.

Just like home prices, much of our economy has been artificially inflated.
ALL government needs to roll back and learn to live within thier respective budgets.
Once we get a grip on the economy, then we can start making improvements.

They (police, fire, teachers, and thousands of other employees) have not received a raise (even a COLA raise) for the last 3-4 or 5 years.

I'll have to take your word for it. I've been away from that for several years.

I'lll actually start drawing my crappy state retirement this year...I hope?

That, combined with a decrease of 5% or more of salary to contribute to retirement is quite a hit.

Again, this pertains primarily to state and county employees.
Many city agencies have had contributory retirements for decades.

Although it's a little hit now, it has always paid off big in the long run.

Figure 2% COLA each year for four years, 8%, plus the 5% cut, is now 13% less pay.

I can't agree with the math. The investment is an investment in your future retirement that you will eventually reap the benefit from.
I certainly can't argue the COLA.

Additionally the fact that he wants cops to work 30-35 years (instead of 20-25 years for 75%) before collecting only 50% retirement is insane. Cops have more stress and statistically live much less time that most other professions. In his world he wants the cops/firefighters to work longer for less, then finally start earning only to die off (ie less payout after 35 years of paying in).

Now this I agree with you on 100%:thumbsup:
Non-Special risk employees have always had to work 30 years to get the max payout. Those of us in "high risk" or "special risk" we're getting off with 25.

I thought the 30 was rediculous for the standard employee.
For high risk, it's ludicrous.:NoNo:

I'm not sure where you worked but being a cop is never a "piece of cake".

I disagree, but it's probably more a matter of opinion:thumbsup:

IMHO, it just wasn't that difficult.

I worked with the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, one of the largest (5th in the country at the time) and most progressive agencies in the country.
Other than the damned politics, for the most part it was a no brainer!

Certainly its dangerous. I wasn't trying to imply otherwise:nonod:
But it certainly didn't require a masters degree to do it.

Nor is it particularly physical the majority of the time.

I used to look around during my daily travels and saw a lot of people working much harder than I was for considerably less.

If one had a modicum of common sense, some street smarts, and paid attention during training, you'd make your 25+ :thumbsup:

So yes, compared to what I do now, in many way's it really was a piece of cake:yesnod:

I won't even mention all the obvious things such as the requirement to take the abuse each and every day from the angry citizens who see the worlds problems as being the officer standing in front of them (with a smile) or possibly face discipline if you speak out.

I face the same angry citizens on an almost daily basis.
They view me as the person responsible for thier problems.
We take verbal and sometimes physical abuse yet do not enjoy the suppport of many agencies (PCSO is the exception:thumbsup or the courts we serve

Customer service people also recieve thier fair share of abuse; albeit, not usually a life threatening as those encountered in either of our professions.

I don't consider this the sole realm of the law enforcement community.

About the only thing we don't have to worry too much about, is the speaking out.
With some exceptions, we're protected.

That said, situations encountered by (LEO's) can become much more violent much quicker simlpy due to the situations they're thrown into.

Court time and standby keep the police from having a "normal" life.

Unfortunatley, law enforcement is not a "normal" job.
I equate this arguement with the complaints of military personnel of having to go to some crap hole to fight.
It comes with the territory.

While true there is the occasional OT and court time, officers are compensated well for these hours that the private sector employee may not enjoy, especially if you own the beotch!:lmaoor it owns you!)

Sure I had the OT and court.
As a motor cop for years, all of our court was night court
I started work at 6am, off at 3pm, court at 7pm, usually not out until 9pm+.
Home at 10 or so.

Long days, but good $$$$ or comp time (our choice) which as a senior officer allowed me to take more time off with the family when I wanted to:thumbsup:

To go a step further, at present the HCSO works 2 on, 2 off, 3 on 3 off, for a total of 15 workign days per month. Not bad for the $$$ they make.:thumbsup:

Take a comp day here and there, and you've got a week off every other week.

Bottom line was, even with the OT and court thrown in, I had a pretty predictable schedule months at a time.
Detectives and such even much more.

Just ask anyone who has completed a study showing that police have one of the highest divorce rates in the government sector.

Actually, while I see your point, that same study showed the CLERGY has one of the highest divorce (when they can marry), alcohol and suicide rates, of the groups studied, along with the police.

The stress of the job (both mentally and on the life schedule) add up in a great big way. We also have the possibility that a cop will be shot and killed, hit and killed, or simply crash and die, - a fire fighter has similiar life threatening risks, and teachers have shooters on the mind as well (look at the VT Hokies shooting as the most severe - but not most recent - Columbine HS, and countless others) while payinig off 60k plus in college loans while at the bottom of the salary scale.

Good points, however, taxicab drivers, road crews, tow drivers, and a host of others share and maybe exceed the opportunity to crash or get hit and killed.

As for getting shot, convenience store clerks are in a category that I wouldn't throw myself in if I had to collect beer cans to survive.

Security guards in some of the high risk areas are also at an extremely high risk, yet generally underpaid, under equipped, poorly trained and restrained by the STATE and it's antiquated requlations!

As we've seen recently:nonod: LEO's do on occasion get shot and occasionally do not survive thier shift.
That said, some of these encounters and thier result can be almost directly attributed to officer error.

Considering the volume of high priority calls, traffic stops, etc., I'd say the percentages are relatively low.

Losing one is too many:thumbsdown:, but as a percentage, we're pretty safe:thumbsup:

I agree with you on the teachers.

We need to pay them MORE!!
Again, stop wasting $$$$ and start paying the employees on a performance based scale:thumbsup:

I know having a private sector job can be stressful, and that owning your own business can be even more stressful,, but the job security in the government sector was the benefit that was a "solid" benefit up till now.

Why?
It's a job.
Why would we consider a government job more secure than any other? Why should it be?

When the private sector has to tighten the belt, they generally lay off and stop spending needlessly.

Why should government be exepmt?

In one of my businesses, when things get slow I stop all needless spending.
I cut back where I can, but try to make personnel a last resort...b ut that's me, and probably not a sound business move.

It has been incorrectly referred to as a life time job, but that is an exaggeration to say the least.

It was meant to be an exaggeration.
the implication in the post was that it was secure and due to the crappy pay (not always the case), should somehow be considered secure?

The job is only a full career to those who put forth the effort. The job can and does end early for the people who mess up (just look at the headlines - they love printing stories about police / ff / teachers who get in trouble) when the same thing does not apply to the private sector.

That's absolutely incorrect:NoNo:

It depends on what you're doing in the private sector.
As with my business, you have to be licensed. We're governed by either the Sheriff or the Chief Judge depending on jurisdiction.

Do the wrong thing and watch your certification go:wavey:

Even without that, as has been attempted in recent years, and as recently (this year) demonstrated, our jobs and businesses can be written out of existence or drastically impacted, by poor legislation and special interests (insurance companies, lawyer lobbies, etc).
There's no real security in the private sector either.
As for the press (and we all love them), they'll throw us under the bus in a second as they will just about anyone.
It's true cops, FF's, etc make better targets. Probably has more to do with the whole "public trust" thing.

Both private and gov sector jobs have plusses and minuses. The plus for gov was job security until now.

All debate aside my brother, and thank you for your service:thumbsup:
you're correct, it was.
Times they are a' changin'...

 

[Shadow]

I know it's not a Rep or Dem issue. I think Z06 said that cuts were not necessary. That's why I asked him the question. From what I've read Fl is in debt and I was just wondering how we get out of debt without cuts.

The copy and paste I did was just to show another opinion which is different from mine and it seems to reflect his thinking. :shrug01:

Sorry, I'm tired and obviously misread your post

 

[thebeepster]

Same ole story...everyone agrees that reform is necessary but nobody wants to endure the pain. Net result = business as usual. The politicos will come up with a band aid fix (that makes us all feel good) so that the real solutions are left to future generations:thumbsdown: