{"id":6046,"date":"2015-02-19T09:43:43","date_gmt":"2015-02-19T14:43:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bygeorgejournal.ca\/?p=6046"},"modified":"2015-02-19T09:48:35","modified_gmt":"2015-02-19T14:48:35","slug":"ontario-public-sector-our-fat-cats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bygeorgejournal.ca\/?p=6046","title":{"rendered":"Ontario public sector: our fat cats"},"content":{"rendered":"

Did we need further proof that Ontario\u2019s public sector enjoys much more than \u201cthe rest of us\u201d? Not really, though here it is: a Fraser Institute<\/em> study<\/a> just released says that \u201cGovernment workers in Ontario receive higher wages and likely more generous non-wage benefits than their private sector counterparts.\u201d<\/p>\n

Niels Veldhuis, president of the Fraser Institute<\/em>, says in a released statement: \u201cAs the Ontario government grapples with a $12.5 billion deficit, it has identified government-sector compensation as a way to restrain spending. Indeed, in light of ongoing collective bargaining negotiations, now is an opportune time to scrutinize the compensation of government employees, which consumes over half of program spending\u201d<\/p>\n

The main finding of the study reveals that, on average, government workers in Ontario, including federal, provincial, and local government workers, receive 11.5 per cent higher wages than comparable workers in the private sector.<\/p>\n

And wages are only part of an employee’s total compensation. Non-wage benefits \u2014 including pensions, early retirement and job security \u2014 can represent an important portion of an overall compensation package. Here we find our fat cats have a cushy life indeed. Here are the non-wage benefits the Fraser Institute study examines:<\/p>\n