Good to see right-wing think tank The Policy Exchange publish a report claiming that public sector workers are living a life of Riley compared to those in the private sector.

According to The Telegraph, public sector wages are "spiralling". Pardon? I don't know of any public sector pay deals that have not been frozen or offered below the rate of inflation. That's a pay cut.

I'm sure private sector staff are also having a hard time of it - although the report admits that those at the top are doing just fine. Public sector staff earn more partly because they are more highly unionised, so they can negotiate pay from a position of greater strength rather than having to just accept whatever private sector bosses feel they can get away with offering. Public sector employers also often feel they have a social responsibility to pay staff a living wage, something which does not trouble many private employers.

There may well be a discrepancy between public and private sector rates of pay but the answer is not to bring everyone down to the lowest possible baseline just so those at the top can make themselves a bit richer.

(Pic: Tax Rebate on Flickr)  

Read the complete post at http://www.communitycare.co.uk/blogs/mental-health/2011/05/ludicrous-right-wing-myth-371.html