The Irish government released their semi-annual budget this week where they have tried to halt the continuing debt the country is facing. Currently the country in operating at a debt of 12% of GDP which is one of the highest of the member states in the EU. The big controversy in the budget is the pay cut to public employees, of which I am one. It is a graduated cut which applies higher percentage cuts at different levels of pay. I have calculated the cut to my pay to be just over 6%, which in effect means that I am earning less than when I started 2 1/2 years ago. The calculated decrease in cost of living is around 3% which gives me around a 3% cut in earning potential. This is bad enough, but it comes with the pension and pay levies that the government has applied to public employees over the last 2 years. Overall my net income is down around 20% from 2007 and that hurts.
Let this be a lesson to anyone arguing for government run anything...socialism sucks, big time!
3 comments:
wow, that's pretty pathetic. how is it the cost of living is *down* when the currency is inflating?
the euro hasn't faced much inflation, if any, yet. the main decrease in costs is associated with rent prices. food has also come down a little.
YIKes-o-rama!!!!! Don't come home it's worse here me thinks!
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