
As I was driving into work today, I was reflecting upon my observations at [an extended meeting] last year. Near the end of the day (I'm talking about 4:45pm), [an employee of a meeting participant] would just get up and leave. IN THE MIDDLE OF [A MEETING SESSION]. Yeah, you read that right. [Everyone else, including the most important participant that everyone was trying to convince] would stay, but the [employee] would just literally shut down her computer, get up, walk out of her little "station" in front of the [main dude], and stroll from the front of the [room], past the [participant] tables, open the little swinging half door, go through, pass through the [observers' seating area], pull open the two large wooden doors, and take off. Just like that. Everyday at 4:45pm, we'd see this happen. Now, if I were to just get up during a meeting at 4:45pm and leave, I'd be out of a job.
But, it gets worse. I was hung up on the lazy government employee (even though it's really just laziness in general, not specifically associated with government work), so I was looking for some funny photo of a government employee today to do this blog entry, and so I image googled "government employee." I found something far worse than a degrading depiction of these so-called public "servants".* Now, I don't know what kind of data the following graphs are derived from, but in my fit of government employee rage, I am going to believe anything that paints a lazy, over-compensated picture of the government employee (i.e., for all of my intents and purposes at this moment, these graphs are COMPLETELY ACCURATE). Just take a look...
There are A LOT of government employees and they are multiplying like rabbits:

They get paid more than your average Joe (both in Canada and in the US):


Their salaries increase more rapidly than our salaries do (in the private sector):

Now, I guess I was targeting the government employees in this post because of my DMV experience.** But, it's really not just them (though it really does look like they have it better than the civilian worker). It's just laziness in general.
* Ha! "Servants" my ass... You have to be present to serve.
[edit] I'm shamelisting this.
[edit] Edited to remove offensive/identifying stuff.
[edit]
** Oh, this reminds me. I tried not to generalize the government employee, but I am very willing to generalize the DMV employee. These are, by far, the laziest people I've met. The last time I went to the DMV (not this morning's ride through their parking lot, but the last time I actually went there and was provided "service"), I watched this chick sit at her desk for 8 minutes doing nothing. I'm talking nothing. She wasn't surfing the net. She wasn't reading a book. She wasn't tidying her desk. She wasn't filing her nails. She was doing nothing except breathing and allowing other involuntary bodily functions to proceed as they tend to do when a live person is doing absolutely nothing. Now, as usual, there were lines and lines of people waiting to be served by these public servants. But, I guess she wanted her full lunch break. I watched her watch the clock. At exactly 1:30, she calls the next number and then starts to work. I guess she didn't want to be cheated out of her 8 minutes of lunch time.
At the risk of sounding like an elitist (thank you) I highly recommend transacting your DMV business at the Auto Club. No swarthy employees and the customers are also pre-screened.
ReplyDeleteCl. Panic, I took your advice and went there today. Got my tags! Thanks.
ReplyDeleteYou're one angry broad. :)
ReplyDeleteYou can also make an appt at the DMV... except when I did that the inept desk worker couldn't figure out how to tell the computer I was there so I ended up waiting longer than if I walked in and took a number. :(
I know, Stillman! I was pretty shook up yesterday...
ReplyDeleteThe one in Los Gatos is pretty fast. There usually isn't a line if you get there around 8am when it opens, if it opens. (I'm no longer angry, but still resentful.)
Hey, I need to move to Canada. According to your chart, Non-profit employees there make nearly as much as the government employees.
ReplyDelete