[JMintzer]

Originally Posted by Topspinmo

Yes, and it takes army of lawyers to pay less than there secretary :duck.

Plus, the fact that you think they actually pay less than THEIR secretary is hysterical...

[kcrazorbackfan]

Originally Posted by Topspinmo

Guess you’re still working? Everyday holiday for me.

Correct and correct!

[chrisinva]

That alone is enough reason to work for the federal gov!

[JMintzer]

Originally Posted by GrumpyOldMan

Okay, let's see if I got this right:

There are about 153 million taxpayers in the US.

The total Federal Government payroll is about $135 billion dollars annually.

That means $135,000,000,000 / 153,000,000 is about $888 (on average) per tax payer.

I am suffering over this extreme taxation, $888 of an average of $25,000, of my hard-earned income to pay for those Federal employees. So, about $3/day off is billed to the average taxpayer.

I would appreciate if anyone can point out my error here? Doesn't seem like something to get excited about considering all the actual waste in the Federal Government.

Your math is fuzzy...

You forgot that 47% of those people pay ZERO Federal Income Tax (per the IRS)...

They only pay FICA and Medicare taxes...

[Swoop]

The number of government employees at all levels has grown exponentially. When I lived in Pennsylvania, once a year our local paper listed the top three employers in our county. Over the years different manufacturers & the hospital occupied the top three spots. But about 10 years ago, that changed. Since then, the top three employers in the county were the Federal, State & local governments…

[Jokomo]

Originally Posted by golfing eagles

No comment.

Actually one----When are we going to declare a Federal holiday in honor of the ancient Egyptian god Osiris? Definitely would be more interesting than this one

American holidays celebrate American people and events. I assume the Osiris reference was meant as satire. I think celebrating a day when a significant number of enslaved Americans learned of their freedom is well worth celebrating. Someone once said that slavery was America’s Original Sin. I’m not sure that’s true, but it’s right up there.

[meme5x]

Ridiculous.. getting out of hand!

[Bill14564]

Originally Posted by GrumpyOldMan

Okay, let's see if I got this right:

There are about 153 million taxpayers in the US.

The total Federal Government payroll is about $135 billion dollars annually.

That means $135,000,000,000 / 153,000,000 is about $888 (on average) per tax payer.

I am suffering over this extreme taxation, $888 of an average of $25,000, of my hard-earned income to pay for those Federal employees. So, about $3/day off is billed to the average taxpayer.

I would appreciate if anyone can point out my error here? Doesn't seem like something to get excited about considering all the actual waste in the Federal Government.

Some things that will complicate the equation:
- If this covers payroll only then there should be an additional calculation for benefits
- Not all taxpayers actually pay Federal Income tax
- This payroll amount might be for just the Executive branch and might not account for the amounts for Congress or the Military

Let's take your number, $3, as a lower limit and allow that it might be as much as $10. So at your number the taxpayer is buying the govt worker a soda and at the higher number the taxpayer is buying a beer.

At a reasonable salary (less than what the President makes, less than most of Congress, more than a McDonalds worker) it would take more than 50 taxpayers donating a beer or more than 160 taxpayers donating a soda to pay for just one government employee to have one day off. (If that salary is too high then just cut the number in half)

$3 or even $10 doesn't seem like much but asking 50 to 160 taxpayers to pony up that amount for just one government person to have an extra holiday makes it feel like a bit more.

I'm not against days off but it certainly is fair to ask the government to consider the cost before adding more.

[spexdr]

As was stated it’s a lot fewer but I do believe we should combine them perhaps Martin Luther King day along with Juneteenth. Another day off for federal employees means millions of dollars in tax payer money going to salaries with no production. We combined Washington and Lincoln’s birthdays to make Presidents’ Day so the precedent has been set.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by sharonl7340

Really? I worked for 4 federal agencies in my career and I knew very few of these people (if any). In fact I knew several employees who worked their asses off, and either died at their desk or on the weekend when they weren't on the federal clock. I actually take a offense at many of these posts tone. I earned every dollar, every benefit while I was a federal employee.

I don't know what you mean by tone, but I was just stating the facts about the sick leave rules for Federal employees. If you are an employee for 20 years, you can accumulate 260 days of sick leave and 30 days of vacation time. That, added to the current year's weekends, vacation days, holidays, and sick leave, will allow the employee to be away from work for more than a year. There is no way a Federal manager can efficiently manage a project when their employees have that much flexibility in the work schedule.

As far as Federal employees working hard, they only need to work 40 hours per week and, if you want them to work longer, you must pay them overtime. It is illegal to not pay them.

[retiredguy123]

Originally Posted by Bonnevie

not true. you would have to show proof via doctor's certificate of need to be off that long. while some people take their sick hours as soon as they accumulate, most don't. I have never seen these Federal employees that "don't show up for work". most keep their sick hours high in case they are needed. It may have changed, but when I worked for the Federal govt. I had to use sick leave for my maternity leave and that wiped out most of my hours. also, if you don't use them, when you retire you do get credit for the amount you have, so most savvy people keep as much as they can. Yes, your sick leave can be used for family care, i.e. the need to care for sick child, dying parent, a number of things but doesn't change the fact you are using the hours you accrued and should something happen to you in the future you may not have enough hours. I saw that a lot. One of my co-workers sons sustained brain injury and she blew threw her hours fast. we were allowed to donate sick hours to people in her position and we did. Many people chose to work in the government for the benefits. at one time, I could have made $35,000 more in the private sector and was called a moron for working for the govt. then the economy tanked, and I was called a parasite contributing to the debt.

You are not correct about the doctor's certificate. The employee doesn't even need to be sick, but can use sick leave to help a friend or family member. If a manager asks for a doctor certificate, they will usually be charged with an EEO complaint for discrimination. The employee will just ask for the documentation used by other employees who took sick leave, and the manager will not have it, hence, discrimination. In 35 years as a Federal employee, I never saw a case where an employee was prevented from using any sick leave they wanted. There were even some employees who would go on sick leave for a year or so, with no intention of returning to work, and then file for their retirement. That gives them an entire extra year of pay, benefits, and longevity, before retiring.

[Nipper]

Not accurate. Check your FACTS on Federal Holidays!

[jimjamuser]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

If you include sick leave, 13 days, vacation, 26 days (for those with 15 years of service), and holidays, 11, it comes to 50 days off. And, the day after Thanksgiving is often added as a day off, by the President.

You know........Germany and French citizens get something like 45 days off - and their countries are NOT falling apart because of it. (France can't get a handle on its immigration problems) Germany is still able to sell BMW and Mercedes Benz vehicles at competitive prices worldwide. Germany has Unions that HELP the companies. The US has fallen victim to propaganda that demonizes Unions - for the purpose of higher profits and HUGE salaries for UPPER-level managers and CEOs. US people and workers are JUST STUPID for allowing this to develop since 1950. Don't think it IS stupid? You as a worker could (?) be having MORE days off AND making a higher salary AND US society would be stronger and more STABLE as a result. Only a few, the CEOs and upper-income developers would have to tighten their belts. WHAT is NOT to like? And PLEASE, don't warn of a communist takeover - it NEVER happened in Germany or Australia - that's a red herring!

[GrumpyOldMan]

Originally Posted by jimjamuser

You know........Germany and French citizens get something like 45 days off - and their countries are NOT falling apart because of it. (France can't get a handle on its immigration problems) Germany is still able to sell BMW and Mercedes Benz vehicles at competitive prices worldwide. Germany has Unions that HELP the companies. The US has fallen victim to propaganda that demonizes Unions - for the purpose of higher profits and HUGE salaries for UPPER-level managers and CEOs. US people and workers are JUST STUPID for allowing this to develop since 1950. Don't think it IS stupid? You as a worker could (?) be having MORE days off AND making a higher salary AND US society would be stronger and more STABLE as a result. Only a few, the CEOs and upper-income developers would have to tighten their belts. WHAT is NOT to like? And PLEASE, don't warn of a communist takeover - it NEVER happened in Germany or Australia - that's a red herring!

Pretty much the way it is. Predatory capitalism has taken over the US, and the corporations are sewing fear, uncertainty, and doubt to lock in their ownership of the country and its government.

[manaboutown]

Originally Posted by sail33or

I am a lifelong Texan. We always had a BBQ on June 19th because all the Black Families did. We all got along and everybody enjoyed this day. It was very similar to Cinco De Mayo where we all had Mexican Food and had parties with Sombreros.

But I can tell you most Black Families did NOT know the significance of June 19th just like the Mexican Families could not tell you what happened on May 5th (Can you) It is NOT Mexican Independence Day.

And one more hugely IRONIC twist. I am going to say this as delicate as possible. No I will let you guess. Why do you think they say "JUNETEENTH" in the first place? We all joked about this along with our Black Co-Workers, etc. but now to say it out loud will bring the Politically Correct Police and anger the agenda driven folks.

It is the timing of the designation. Why now? We know why?

Growing up in New Mexico I never heard of Juneteenth. When I went into the army in 1965 I went to Ft. Jackson for basic and then played in the band there. Many of the guys in the band were black and in mid June started discussing plans for Juneteenth. I told them I had never heard of it and asked what it was. They told me it was the day Lincoln freed the slaves, not entirely accurate, but close enough. It was very significant to them and understandably so.

Several Pueblos are located along the Rio Grande. Each has a number of feast or fiesta days to commemorate their traditional holidays. Some are open to visitors and I have gone to watch the dances.

I had not heard of Cinco de Mayo until 1990 when I got over to Southern California. Boy it is one HUGE party day there, ironically mostly for Anglos. lol. My Mexican gardener and cleaning lady told me it meant nothing to them so I looked it up. It is the anniversary of Mexico winning a minor battle at Puebla against the French. A Mexican beer company got the big celebrations going in the USA to sell more of their beer!

How Beer Companies Turned a Minor Holiday Into America's Favorite Mexican Drinking Day