Take a good look at your paycheck this week. You may wish you worked for the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Tracie Mauriello of the Harrisburg bureau for the Post-Gazette wrote an interesting piece about the salaries of state workers who are paid more than Governor Rendell.
Here are some of the highlights.
At least 96 state employees are paid more than Gov. Ed Rendell, whose salary is $174,435. All together, at least 656 have salaries in excess of $150,000. At least 3,836 are paid more than $100,000 a year.
That's a big bill footed by taxpayers, and government watchdog groups say high salaries should be scrutinized carefully. The state employees' bosses, of course, say they earn every penny.
John C. Cavanaugh, chancellor of the State System of Higher Education, tops the list with a $327,500 salary. That's 7 Â 1/2 times as much as the average Pennsylvanian makes in a year. Still, it's much less than the $558,378 that the state of Georgia pays the chancellor of its university system.
With a salary of $320,000, James Preston, executive director of the Pennsylvania Higher Education Assistance Agency, isn't far behind Mr. Cavanaugh.
Stephen M. Curtis, president of the Community College of Philadelphia, comes in third with compensation of $227,584, including a $37,500 housing and car allowance.
Similar research two years ago by The Patriot-News of Harrisburg found that 79 employees were paid more than the governor in 2007, when his pay was $164,396. At that time, 550 were paid more than $150,000, and 3,030 more than $100,000.
In many cases, employees are being paid tens of thousands more than the executives and administrators who supervise them.
Showing posts with label employee salaries. Show all posts
Showing posts with label employee salaries. Show all posts
Sunday, March 29, 2009
Monday, March 9, 2009
FULL LISTING 2008 HOUSE AND SENATE SALARIES
As a follow up to my post on salaries of employees of the Pennsylvania Legislature that earn more than their bosses I compiled some figures from these tables.
The total for House employees listed is $4,989,300.35. The total for the Senate employees is $4,119,465.00. Source: Chief Clerk's Office, Pennsylvania House of Representatives and Pennsylvania State Senate.
Almost $10 million a year and we still have Bonusgate. Almost $10 million per year and Todd Eachus needed to hire outside counsel.
As far as Bonusgate and its costs go here's what the Morning Call had to say on the subject.
Recapping then, strike one was the secret and corrupt system by which state employees used taxpayer resources to help their bosses be re-elected. Strike two was the diversion of state funds to pay them extra for work they shouldn't have been doing in the first place. And the worst part of strike three is now that Bonusgate has come to light, taxpayers are being stuck with both the costs of prosecution (by the attorney general's office and two grand juries) and defense -- the $5.8 million for lawyers and other costs just disclosed. (By the way, it took a Right to Know complaint by the Associated Press to make that public. If it were up to the legislative leaders, it still would be a secret.)
To me it would appear $5 million seems to be a ball park throw around figure when you want to waste taxpayer's money.
The total for House employees listed is $4,989,300.35. The total for the Senate employees is $4,119,465.00. Source: Chief Clerk's Office, Pennsylvania House of Representatives and Pennsylvania State Senate.
Almost $10 million a year and we still have Bonusgate. Almost $10 million per year and Todd Eachus needed to hire outside counsel.
As far as Bonusgate and its costs go here's what the Morning Call had to say on the subject.
Recapping then, strike one was the secret and corrupt system by which state employees used taxpayer resources to help their bosses be re-elected. Strike two was the diversion of state funds to pay them extra for work they shouldn't have been doing in the first place. And the worst part of strike three is now that Bonusgate has come to light, taxpayers are being stuck with both the costs of prosecution (by the attorney general's office and two grand juries) and defense -- the $5.8 million for lawyers and other costs just disclosed. (By the way, it took a Right to Know complaint by the Associated Press to make that public. If it were up to the legislative leaders, it still would be a secret.)
To me it would appear $5 million seems to be a ball park throw around figure when you want to waste taxpayer's money.
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