Sometimes I get tired of the economic gloom and doom in local and national news. The dwindling school budgets because of declining enrollment, the downturn in revenue at local golf courses and lodging facilities, and the desperate economic status of our economic development authority are depressing. The national budget is such bad news that it is hard to comprehend the consequences—we are a trillion dollars in debt. A trillion? It’s mind-boggling for everyone, but especially for someone as math challenged as me.
That is why I was happy to read Jane Howard’s county board article last week reporting that the Cook County Highway Department union followed the example of the other county employees and agreed not to push for a costof living increase this year.
Knowing some of the county highway workers, I’m guessing this was not a unanimous decision. I’ll bet there was interesting debate over coffee in the morning at the garage.
I feel bad that the county highway guys didn’t get a COLA increase. They are a hard-working bunch—working round-the-clock plowing and grading when the snow flies, sloshing through icy water to thaw frozen culverts in the spring, patching roads and clearing rights-of-way in the summer heat. Theydeserve a COLA increase.
As do the other county workers. I don’t know all the county employees, but those I do know work very hard and do their best not to waste tax dollars. It would have been nice for all of them to receive a COLA increase.
The no COLA blow was softened, I’m sure by the promise that the highway department will get a .25 COLA next year. That and the fact that county staffers also have retirement and health care packages that are the envy of their nongovernmental counterparts. There are a lot of people who would sign off on that deal— the majority of us haven’t had a COLA increase for a number of years and don’t anticipate one next year.
So it was nice that the county highway department is making this show of solidarity with the taxpayers who ultimately pay their wages. Because even if the county budget is only in the millions, it still takes an amazing effort to keep it balanced.
Hopefully some of this local self-control will trickle up to our state and national governments. In fact, if it doesn’t, our trillion-dollar deficit will never go away.
Unquestionably, there is progress. The average American now pays twice as much in taxes as he formerly got in wages.
H. L. Mencken
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