Municipal spending out of control

Re: “City workers’ deal is too rich,” editorial, Oct. 24.

As one who has spent my working life in the private sector, your editorial commenting on the recent Victoria city agreement with CUPE certainly resonated.

As we are all aware, wealth is created by the private sector, with various levels of government spending tax dollars collected from those who earn their living with no guarantees or safety nets.

The nature of free markets is such that success in business is largely determined by a combination of drive, creativity, vision and luck. There is no safety net for a failed business venture or a lack of commissions when sales are flat.

In decades past, when government deficit spending did not drive prosperity, civil servants and municipal employees were paid less in return for job security and reasonable benefits. What has evolved within municipal and other government workforces is a union-driven culture where the pay scale and benefits are truly the envy of all private-sector workers, with huge salaries, over-the-top pension and benefits, ridiculous holiday and sick-pay provisions and a guaranteed job.

Even incompetence is shielded by the union’s perceived mandate to fight disciplinary actions, no matter how valid.

The majority of civil servants are a credit to their positions, but when their compensation so vastly exceeds that of the citizens who are generating the tax revenues to foot the bill, it is not a sustainable situation. As your editorial points out, we need a serious look at spending in B.C. municipal governments, as it’s out of control.

Tom Pink Oak Bay