4 ms·

Read sykhic's comments below. These unsustainable sweetheart deals were negotiated by the government employees and their unions.

• dv_dt 8y ago
  Isn't there equal responsibility for politicians & gov'ts who agreed to the negotiated contracts? Were they not agreeing in good faith?
  • hn_throwaway_99 8y ago
    Corporate management and worker unions have what I'd call a "healthy" adversarial relationship. Corporations want to pay workers as little as possible, unions want workers to make as much as possible, so hopefully you get a decent compromise. With public sector unions, especially in smaller cities and states, the relationship is more incestuous and oftentimes the settlements aren't really made in good faith. The politicians desire the political support of the unions they are negotiating with, and figure by the time the pension bomb explodes it will be some other poor sucker's problem. Taxpayers are the ones that get screwed.
    • dunpeal 8y ago
      Exactly. Not to mention that by the time it gets to the elected official's desk for signature, it's been negotiated between government employees and their senior managers, who are also government employees... It's basically a deal negotiated by government employees among themselves, and approved by a politician who often needs to maintain favor among these employees. Add to that the fact that these agreements only lead to a crisis long after the politician is retired (or dead), and it's no wonder these unsustainable deals get approved as a matter of course.