We are all painfully aware that Wisconsin is one the highest taxed states in the U.S. Our h... Letters: City workers must pay m
Our high taxes are, of course, a direct result of high cost of government at both the state and local levels. While we would like to see a big reduction at both, we, the citizens — owners of the City of Sheboygan — have the most direct control at the local level.
The seven city labor unions have contracts that call for continued increases in wages and salaried/managerial personal continue to get annual automatic increases despite their already high levels. Some are retroactive to the beginning of 2005.
Up until now, the city government has been looking for ways to increase revenue to maintain the status quo, instead of searching to reduce costs and property taxes and so-called user fees.
This philosophy has to change and it has to change now. The major ingredient of the high cost in government is excessive salaries, wages and benefits — mainly health care.
It is an unfortunate situation in America that the cost of health care has soared during the last 20 years. In the private sector, employees have been paying an increasing proportion of their health care costs year by year.
Also, in the Sunday, Oct. 30, edition of The Sheboygan Press there was an article, "Workers may be in for health-plan sticker shock." It was shown that the average health care cost that an employee must pay has increased tremendously from 2000 to 2006. Employee contributions to company health care plans jumped by more than 143 percent and out-of-pocket expenses by more than 115 percent. This equates to thousands of dollars per employee. Medicare cost is increasing by more than 14 percent to its recipients in 2006, while Social Security is increasing by only 4.1 percent. In addition, for those who can least afford it, Medicaid is under fire for a reduction in coverage to save money.
Meanwhile in the public sector all employees pay nothing or very little toward their health care cost. The government — taxpayers — picks up the tab. It is time to change this.
Public employees should pay a comparable amount, as do the private sector employees. Also, coverage should end upon termination of employment, including retirement. This will be an overall compensation reduction that is long overdue. It will not be popular with the public employees, but it must be done.
I urge all Sheboygan citizens to contact their aldermen and strongly push that beginning in 2006 the employees of the City of Sheboygan be required to pay a comparable amount to the public sector for their health care cost.
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