Posted on 01/04/2018 6:03:38 PM PST by mdittmar
“Federal employees and retirees have already done their part,” lawmakers say
WASHINGTON – The largest union representing federal government workers is echoing a call by 95 members of Congress to oppose further cuts to federal employee pay and benefits as part of any budget negotiations.
Reps. Gerry Connolly of Virginia, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and Elijah Cummings of Maryland led 95 members of Congress in urging their fellow lawmakers to reject cutting federal employee pay and benefits to offset increased discretionary spending.
“These lawmakers understand the financial pain and sacrifice that current and retired federal employees have endured in the name of deficit reduction,” American Federation of Government Employees National President J. David Cox Sr. said.
“Federal employees have had their pay and benefits cut by $182 billion and growing since 2011,” Cox said. “They are earning 6.5 percent less today than they did at the start of this decade, even as costs for health care, groceries, and other expenses continue to rise. Federal workers can’t afford more cuts to their pay and benefits.”
Congressman Connolly said it’s time for Congress to stop treating federal workers like a piggy bank.
“Enough is enough. No other group has been asked to sacrifice more towards deficit reduction than our federal workforce. They've endured pay freezes, a shutdown, sequestration, furloughs and benefit cuts. The federal workforce should be thanked for their honorable service, not treated like a piggy bank,” Connolly said.
In a Dec. 22 letter to House Speaker Paul Ryan and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, lawmakers said additional cuts to federal employee pay and benefits should not be used to offset increased discretionary spending caused by lifting government spending caps.
“While we agree that a long-term bipartisan budget agreement to lift the devastating sequestration caps is necessary, to finance such an agreement on the backs of middle class federal employees who have dedicated their lives to serving our nation would be wrong under any circumstances,” the letter states. “But to do so, immediately after passing an unpaid-for tax cut that will explode the federal deficit and disproportionately benefit the wealthiest Americans, would be a slap in the face to the hardworking Americans who care for our veterans, process our Social Security checks, and protect our national parks.”
“Federal employees and retirees have already done their part,” the letter concludes. “It is time to find other ways to reduce the deficit.”
Here's an old song I like;)
No, the Federal employees have NOT done their part. A huge majority of them work at the pace they want to, not what is needed. They incredible benefits not available to the general public. I can not stand the lies any more.
““Federal employees and retirees have already done their part,” the letter concludes. “It is time to find other ways to reduce the deficit.””
Make the federal government a right to work enterprise. Then there would be no need for union dues which will put more money in their pockets. Then give every worker a 10% bump in pay and then make them pay their own retirement and medical benefits.
That will save the government billions.
Oh, and cut every department by 10%.
At least 10% maybe 20 to 30% to start.
I am hoping Trump is a man of his word again and shuts down this government over Daca unless we get 100% of the wall ( NOT 10%) I dont care if they send 800,000 deep state bureaucrats home as long as we dont pay them for not working at the end. I dont care about them. Did you know that the military gets paid anyway and social security and medicare. It all gets paid in a shut down. Dont believe their lies. Shut the damned thing down. They cant keep us out of our Parks because they aren’t collecting fees!! SHUT IT DOWN but what ever you do — BUILD 100% of that WALL! You promised!! We delivered. Your turn!!
If they can’t cut their pay and benefits, then cut the number of them in half and management by three fourths and see if anyone notices.
Most federal civil servants are greatly overpaid and have benefits that private sector employees can only dream of.
You are correct, only “ non-essential” employees go home. There are no “non-essential” employees in the private sector (unless they are somebody’s brother-in-law) The whole idea is preposterous!
The truth is that federal retiree benefits are OK, but not overly generous.
There are also many VA employees who work very hard.
The answer is not cuts in pay.
The answer is simple:
1. Merit based salaries on performance.
2. Firing incompetents and lazy ones.
Agree 100%!
Simply, why is government at ANY level unionized!?
Most of us in the private sector don't have retirement benefits anymore - except for our own money we invested in a 401K. And many of us could never afford to put as much in the 401K as we really needed, so we lost out on the maximum company contribution and are now short. The Trump Boom is really helping for now, but there's a lot of Bush and Obola malaise in there too.
Reps. Gerry Connolly of Virginia, Jamie Raskin of Maryland, and Elijah Cummings of Maryland-———that’s where around 80% of federal worker live. Just coincidental.
(Ah, just kidding! I know a federal employee who's the biggest a-hole in the world and brags all the time that he can't be fired.)
The headline has it backwards. The lawmakers are parroting the AFGE union talking points not the other way around.
If you fire 25% of their @sses, it won’t be necessary to cut benefits.
Hard to believe, whod'a'thought?
Trump’s original budget plan had a terrible proposal to shave one half a percentage point off federal and postal retirees’ COLA in their annuity checks. I was very concerned about this and made my views known to elected officials. Thankfully the plan was dropped from the budget that was passed, but it had the effect of making me feel very numb toward the political process and Republicans in general. I’m back on board with the Trump cheering team, but the process left me a little wiser about the political process.
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