Should The Wealth Be Shared By Some And Not Others?

Sharing the wealth not the point

BY JOHN GORMLEY, SPECIAL TO THE STARPHEONIX MAY 27, 2011

Speaking with a group of raSdio show listeners the other day, I had an epiphany -the "ah ha" moment when I finally blurted out the obvious: School teachers and public-sector unions are missing the point when they talk of sharing Saskatchewan's wealth.

In past months, it's been the constant narrative of health care employees, 12,000 striking teachers and now those threatening strikes at the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency and within at least one Crown corporation.

Paid by taxpayers' money, these people say they want to share in Saskatchewan's strong economy or, as NDP Leader Dwain Lingenfelter puts it, they "deserve their fair share."

I get it. The province is doing very well.

Rewarded this week with the highest credit rating in Saskatchewan's history, the Saskatchewan Party government is running a budget surplus and has paid down the provincial debt by 40 per cent to less than $4 billion.

Brad Wall and company have also instituted the largest personal income tax cut in history and have spent more than $1.5 billion to tackle the worst highways in Canada.

This is all good.

But the logic is flawed for teachers and civil servants to argue they should "share" the extra money flooding into the province from resource wealth, taxes and increased business activity.

At first blush, it could make sense, particularly if you're a public servant. But not so fast.

Working for a government cheque -particularly in an occupation as important as teaching -should see employees paid fairly, within the appropriate range of local and national comparisons, keeping in mind the skills, training, availability of jobs and the number of people prepared to work in those jobs.

But "fair share" implies someone has contributed directly to creating what it is they want to share. And it smacks of an entitlement mentality, where those who did not create the wealth are all too keen to divvy it up.

There is another more important consideration to who should be sharing the wealth. It is all citizens and taxpayers with a stake in Saskatchewan -people like you and your family.

When windfall money flows to governments, one of two things can happen.

It can be used to raise the salaries of public servants and hence become a permanent ongoing expense that future governments will have to honour in financial good times and bad.

Or the money can be used for the greater good of all citizens by paying off the entire provincial debt, lowering taxes for everyone or re-building vital infrastructure that all of us use.

Mindful of the best outcomes for the greatest number of people, targeting surplus money to specifically improve access to health care or shorten hospital waiting lists is surely better than giving teachers what they euphemistically refer to as "an historic adjustment to reflect our value."

Nothing against teachers and civil servants. It's just that there are a lot more people than them who should be laying claim to a fair share.