During one summer of my childhood, my father's client invited the entire family to visit him on his estate on Nantucket. At the time his client was the founder and CEO of a Fortune 500 company. As a successful businessman he could afford to spend his summers holed up on his yacht while spoiling his guests with lavish guesthouses, fishing trips, and clambakes. A few years later his company ran into financial trouble and was forced to lay off employees. Despite the fact that he had acquired large amounts of personal wealth, he sold his yacht and private jet. As a man of conscience, he didn't feel that it was right to tell an employee that they were out of a job while he spent the summer on a yacht in Nantucket Harbor.
In order to trim $1B from the FY 09 budget, Governor Patrick has announced that 1,000 of the current 45,000 state employees will be laid off. The Governor has warned that the cuts will be deep, but don't expect him to pull a Palin and auction off those $40,000 window treatments on eBay just yet. While I'm sure that some of the jobs being cut may be justified, telling 1,000 Massachusetts employees that they are out of a job right before the holidays is just bad form. Especially if you're still driving around in a $700/month Cadillac courtesy of taxpayers.
How about 86ing the Caddy in favor of a Lincoln? Or shuttering the new trade offices in Shangahi? Or better yet, how about we stop using state funds to pay for local projects (eg: the demolition of Canton Center)? Instead of symbolically cutting back by halting unnecessary state sponsored junkets and conferences, the Governor is going to toss 1,000 state employees into unemployment pool. It's behavior more typical of an AIG executive than a man who swore to work for the people of Massachusetts.
Take a lesson from CEO's before you, Gov, and realize that your actions mean something. I can hardly wait until the '10 elections. If I have my way, Governor Patrick will be joining ranks with the 1,000 ex-state employees.
About Me
- pahkcah02
- Boston, Massachusetts, United States
- I am a 28 year old sales rep who spends most of the day working out of a "virtual" office, which in reality is actually my bedroom. I started this blog because I've always enjoyed writing and having people actually read my blog is the ultimate ego-boost. I originally started off on MySpace but recently decided to join the "big leagues" here on Blogger. For the most part, I'm your typical scotch-drinking, potty-mouthed nice Jewish girl living in the suburbs of the greatest city in the history of western civilization, Boston, Massachusetts. I first left my area code during college, when I interened at a dotcom in London. You'd think that after meeting all sorts of interesting people from diverse cultures that I would become some type of open-minded intellectual. Completely fed up with whiny Euro-trash, upon my return to Boston I quickly became a registered Republican - I haven't looked back since. I like to write about everything from "global warming" to quirky travel stories to one hit wonders recorded in the 1990's. If you'd like to comment that's fine, so long as you're not an asshole about it. Thanks for stopping by.
1 comment:
You're mixing apples and oranges.
While the CEO was illustrating a great amount of sensitivity, he's the one who paid for his yacht and private jet. Capitalism means some people make more money than others and he certainly didn't OWE that gesture. Those were his belongings, not tax-payer funded, and he was more than welcome to keep them.
As for state job layoffs-it doesn't have much to do with the gov. His mandate requires him to make cuts in times like this and state employees accept jobs knowing they can get laid off at any time if there is a financial crises. The people getting laid off accepted state jobs knowing that was a (slim) possibility. In fact, my old state job would not of gotten cut, but I know a few ppl I worked with might of been let go.
That's the big caveat ppl don't realize - state jobs have incredible benefits but they are not protected or guaranteed. In extreme financial crises you know you might get booted.
In my humble opinion the gov would be irresponsible and hack-ish if weren't making these cuts.
Post a Comment