Commentary
In a bygone era civil servants often spoke of their dedication to public employment as a form of sacrifice. Government work offered stability, but rarely the salaries, bonuses, opportunities, or prestige available in private enterprise. It was regarded as a civic vocation and a service to the common good.
In Canada, such claims are now detached from reality. Today, public-sector positions offer salaries, pensions, benefits, and job security that often exceed what comparable workers in the private economy can expect to earn. In some sectors, government and Crown corporation employment has become not merely competitive with private enterprise, but superior to it in compensation, stability, and lifestyle….