Comment from public sector worker about this Blog

After the series of CBC interviews I received a comment post on the blog. It was from a public sector employee who was upset with some of my remarks on the radio interviews. One of those 11 interviews across Canada can be found here from CBC Edmonton. In the rest of Canada that same interview was done by Catherine Swift

Monique did respond with some very legitimate comments. There are some members of our society that new to be protected.

For example, my mother a single mother sacrificed much to raise me and my three brothers. I am very thankful that she has a partial federal government pension.

We know that the group most at risk to poverty is senior women.

Some of the comments were as follows:

It is true that *some* individuals at the highest levels of management in municipal governments receive compensations of 6-figure salaries, along with their pensions and various benefits packages. However, if you would first do, and then share, thorough research with your readers you would find that many, if not all, of those managers are in union-exempt positions. This is certainly true of my own employer.

The vast majority of employees in my workplace do not make enough to even be included on the annual compensation disclosure list (whose cut-off is 50 K, annually). I am one of those employees not on that list.

Yes, if I am lucky enough to not lose my job to cutbacks in the next 20-some years (I am a newer employee) I will retire with a pension that will allow me to not starve, keep a roof over my head and access sound health care in my retirement years. How dare I expect this?!!

Until that time though, I will take my $44, 000 per year (plus - maybe - an annual cost of living increase and, yes, benefits: I'm having my teeth cleaned this Wednesday, and tonight I will file to get maximum - $200 - reimbursement for the $500 prescription eye glass lenses I had to buy last month). I'll take that 44 K and the promise of a dignified retirement and do my darndest to serve the people of my city - putting to use my 6 years of post-secondary education (a graduate degree is the minimum professional qualification for my position - you may be interested to know mine came from a faculty of management) to try to figure out a way to offer my particular type of public service city-wide with a staff of 2.

In my opinion we live in one of the best countries in the world. There are many challenges ahead for us and our society. I think we can all come together and find the solutions that will allow for fairness and dignity for all Canadians.

I hope that we can achieve for all Canadians what Monique outlines in her comments.

Thanks for your comments Monique