The public service strike is a great idea

The Herald reports:

About 10,000 public servants are set to strike tomorrow following prolonged pay negotiations.

This is great timing. The Government needs to reduce the public service headcount by around 10,000 staff, and by coincidence 10,000 staff are going to stop working for a while. I hope the strike lasts at least a fortnight, so one can properly measure what the impact of their absence was.

“For members, effectively that’s saying to them that you’re gonna take a pay cut from this round of negotiations. A lot of them, we’re talking roles that pay anywhere from $65,000 to $70-75,000.

I’m sure there are a few roles that pay at that level, but the reality is public sector jobs are paid on average 25% more than private sector – $2,062 a week vs $1.642.