the average city salary tops $60,000 per year
As it does in most Canadian cities.
a city of Toronto cleaner makes on average $20.91/hr., a parks labourer $20.45/hr. and a garbage collector $23.38/hr. Needless to say, these allegedly "competitive" salaries (which do not include some 23% extra in benefits) far surpass what's paid for similar duties in the private sector.
I have no problem with city workers making a fair wage. Sure, it could be argued they make a few dollars too much, but even still it doesn't begin to address Toronto's fiscal straight-jacket. Moreover, decent wages keep our economy humming and set a standard by what is paid to non-union employees. Trust me, few of us would make what we do if we didn't have union wages to compare ours to. You also aren't factoring in the amount that must be given over to line a company's profit margin if these services were to be privatized. Comparing wages is meaningless really. What needs to be compared is the cost of having public workers versus private workers administer the work. Indeed, it tends to be cheaper outsourcing certain services, but the savings aren't nearly what comparing wages makes them appear.
Miller refuses to contemplate reversing city council's recent pay raise
At the end of the day, Toronto is half a billion in the hole and reversing councillors recent raises will save -- I think I heard -- $2 million. Therefore, it would be purely symbolic. Whether or not it should be done anyway is fair debate.
-Miller refuses to consider unpaid time off for staff, similar to "Rae Days"
-Miller refuses to contemplate reversing city council's recent pay raise
Good, because Toronto isn't a poor city. Why should our generally hard-working politicians take a modest pay cut and why should our civil service have forced un-paid time off? Toronto's fiscal crisis is an illusion created not by Toronto, but by our senior levels of government. Why isn't the Toronto Sun asking
them why? Aren't they a Toronto-loving paper?
Basically, Ottawa and Queen's Park refuse to allow the level of government that affects people's lives the most the tools that it needs to be successful. In fact, they saddle that level with programs that it doesn't have the funds nor the revenue generating capacity to administer. Cut Toronto's wages and "so-called" fat all you want, but you'll still be millions in the hole only the city will look and feel worse.
This problem isn't Toronto's either. It may be most acute here, but it's a problem affecting every major city in the country and is only getting worse.
