Brooks: Public sector unions have hollowed out America

[Geee]

Washington Examiner:

Brooks: Public sector unions have hollowed out America
By: DAVID FREDDOSO
Online Opinion Editor
10/12/10 12:45 PM EDT

Writing today in The New York Times, David Brooks looks at the question of why New Jersey cannot afford to build the ARC tunnel:

New Jersey can’t afford to build its tunnel, but benefits packages for the state’s employees are 41 percent more expensive than those offered by the average Fortune 500 company. These benefits costs are rising by 16 percent a year.

New York City has to strain to finance its schools but must support 10,000 former cops who have retired before age 50. California can’t afford new water projects, but state cops often receive 90 percent of their salaries when they retire at 50. The average corrections officer there makes $70,000 a year in base salary and $100,000 with overtime (California spends more on its prison system than on its schools).