Poll: Public doesn’t think their employees overpaid

It turns out, people don’t hate public employees after all.

That fortuitous bit of news broke the same day the Las Vegas Chamber of Commerce released its now-annual study of public employee salaries in Nevada. As usual, the survey found Nevada public employees (state and local) make more than many of their counterparts across the country, but that there are fewer of them than in any other state.

Although the Chamber’s spokeswoman said the business group was simply presenting information, a chamber official made it clear what he thinks the study shows.

“As our state and local governments struggle to make the most with our depleted resources, it makes absolutely no sense that we continue to pay local government employees well beyond the national average and reward them with the most generous retirement benefits in the country while we are being forced to cut K-12 education, higher education, infrastructure and human services,” said Hugh Anderson, chairman of the chamber’s government affairs committee.

“Well beyond,” according to the Chamber survey, means Nevada state employees make $3,793 more per year than the average state employee across the U.S.

Local government employees make $7,723 more than their counterparts across the country. Nevada teachers actually make less than the national average. (The figures come from 2009, so those reported salaries may be higher than what workers are receiving now after mandatory furloughs at the state level and negotiated pay cuts at the local.)

But Anderson’s message is unmistakable, and he’s not alone in saying it: Public employee salary and benefits are contributing to the poverty of local and state governments, and that has to be fixed if we’re to get out of this mess. It’s the same message Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is selling as he tries to do away with collective bargaining for everything but salaries in his state.

The only problem? People just aren’t buying it.

The New York Times/CBS poll — released Monday — shows just 26 percent of those surveyed think salaries for public employees are too high; 36 percent say they are “about right” and another 25 percent say they are too low.

A majority — 56 percent — said they opposed cutting pay and benefits of public employees in order to reduce state budget deficits, while 37 percent said they favor those cuts.

And when asked directly to choose between increasing taxes, decreasing public employee benefits, or cutting funding for various projects, 40 percent chose taxes, 22 percent chose cutting public employee benefits and 20 percent said reduce road-building projects.

And on the central question of eliminating collective bargaining rights — center stage in Wisconsin but only a side issue here in Nevada — a full 60 percent said they opposed taking away that right. Just 33 percent were in favor.

Public employees have taken their lumps here in Nevada, primarily after widespread reports of Clark County firefighters abusing sick leave. But most public employee unions, both here and in Wisconsin, have shown a willingness to give up pay and benefits to counter the effects of the recession. And it looks like they’ll continue to do so; Gov. Brian Sandoval’s budget contains a 5 percent pay cut for state workers and teachers.

For their trouble, public employees have been vilified by business groups, right-wing think tanks and media reports that portray them — and not, say, the recession — as the primary cause of the state’s fiscal problems.

That’s unfortunate, because most public employees (think teachers, nurses, cops, social workers and prison guards) are hardworking people who do the work of two or three employees elsewhere.

It’s good to know that people realize that, despite what they may have been told.

Steve Sebelius is a Review-Journal political columnist and author of the blog SlashPolitics.com. His column appears Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. He can be reached at 387-5276 or a ssebelius@reviewjournal.com.