Path: utzoo!dciem!nrcaer!cognos!sce!jstewart
From: jstewart@sce.carleton.ca (John Stewart)
Newsgroups: ont.general
Subject: Re: Community College Teachers on strike
Message-ID: <708@sce.carleton.ca>
Date: 15 Nov 89 16:07:38 GMT
References: <606@alias.UUCP> <1989Nov11.143948.15365@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> <255DCAC0.7630@maccs.dcss.mcmaster.ca> <1989Nov14.111855.27329@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu> <1989Nov14.144805.4377@jarvis.csri.toronto.edu>
Reply-To: jstewart@sce.UUCP (John Stewart)
Distribution: ont
Organization: Systems Eng., Carleton Univ., Ottawa, Canada
Lines: 17


   I think the underlying problem is the large debts accumulated by the
federal and provincial governments in combination with our high interest
rates.  The result is higher taxes AND spending cutbacks at the same time.
Salary increases for public sector employees, beyond the usual cost of
living increase, cannot be provided without additional tax increases.
Governments which are already taking heat from the taxpayers for recent tax
increases have little incentive to provide more money for salaries.

   I think we are going to see this situation arise more frequently in the
future.  Nurses are the first example I can think of, but I'm sure there are
many other groups of public sector employees who will be looking for more
than cost of living increases.  There is also pay equity coming soon which
will result in some groups of employees receiving real increases beyond the
cost of living.
-- 
"Support the President's War On Long Usenet Signatures"