VANCOUVER, B.C.: The Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF) released new data today just in time for Labour Day showing the large gap between government workers’ pension benefits and everyone else. The CTF called on government to pass a Compensation Equity Act to bring public sector employees’ pay and benefit packages into line with private sector comparators.
In British Columbia, Statistics Canada data shows that 88.6% of government employees have workplace pensions. Outside of government, just 19.7% of workers have workplace pension plans.
|
Government Employees |
Everyone Else |
|
|
Defined Benefit |
84.7% |
9.7% |
|
Defined Contribution |
3.3% |
5.1% |
|
Other |
0.6% |
4.9% |
|
No Pension Plan |
11.4% |
80.3% |
Source: Statistics Canada (CTF custom order of most recent data.)
“Not only are government employees more likely to have workplace pensions, they typically have the ‘golden’ type – defined benefit plans,” said CTF Federal Director Gregory Thomas. “Considering most defined-benefit pension plans in the country are running a deficit, it’s time for the government to follow the private sector and get out of them.”
To highlight the growing public-private pay gap, the CTF’s B.C. office launched a campaign today calling on B.C.’s political leaders to adopt a Compensation Equity Act as part of their May 2013 election platforms.
“While most of us are paying taxes and trying to scrimp and save for our own retirements, public sector employees continue to enjoy guaranteed, expensive pension plans. That’s simply not fair,” said CTF B.C. Director Jordan Bateman. “Taxpayers need assurances that public sector wage and benefit packages aren’t going to keep heading upward while our take-home pay erodes due to taxes and inflation.”
Bateman gave media a sneak preview of a new 90-second video, featuring hidden camera footage of two liquor clerks, one in a government liquor store making up to $28 per hour (and part of BCGEU job action seeking a five per cent raise), and one at a private liquor store, likely earning $11 an hour. The video will be posted to YouTube in the coming days.
“Why is one liquor clerk making three times the other, including a pension, for the same job?” asked Bateman. “This inherent unfairness has taxpayers looking for a change in the way government pays our public sector employees. We can’t afford to keep overpaying the market for labour.”
The CTF believes a Compensation Equity Act would go a long way to solving these problems. It would make it illegal for a public servant to be paid more than they would earn for the same job in the private sector. It would factor in pension as “deferred income,” ensuring that taxpayers weren’t overpaying twice for the same labour. It would set out salary caps for executives and build a cadre of skilled negotiators who could grind down government pay and benefits.
The CTF also released calculations today showing that the average government employee in Canada saw $8,734 go into their pension plan last year while everyone else saw an average of just $4,092 go into their pension plan or RRSP.
|
|
Total Deposits by Employer & Employees* |
Number of Employees |
Per Employee Contribution |
|
Government Employees |
$31.3 Billion |
3,587,800 |
$8,734.18 |
|
Private-Sector Employees |
$56.2 Billion |
13,740,800 |
$4,091.74 |
* Note: Deposits for the private sector include total nation-wide RRSP contributions (estimated $33.3 billion based on average of last five years,) Source: Statistics Canada
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