OUR OPINION: DAYS OFF

Government wages and benefits are - and should be - under increased scrutiny in these tough economic times. Public workers deserve fair wages and benefits but they don't exist in a separate universe from the private world.

Private businesses have been forced to become leaner during this recession and that has been, at times, a very painful process. The private sector has eliminated jobs, curtailed benefits and even cut back wages in many cases. No employee likes to go backward in wages or benefits but hard times sometimes call for drastic measures.

In many cases, however, public employees have not shared this pain. Let's look at just one small category of government benefits. A recent advertisement in this newspaper for a State Operated Services master's level social worker detailed the number of paid days off which are offered to job applicants.

• Up to 29 paid vacation days per year.

• 13 sick days per year.

• 11 paid holidays.

That's 53 days a year when that employee doesn't have to work for the citizens of Minnesota. By almost any standard one might want to measure it; that is an extremely generous package.

Gov. Tim Pawlenty and the Legislature are going to have to look long and hard at ways to establish a balanced budget. And the problem is not going to go away after this year. As we go forward compensation and benefits of state employees that are overly generous can't be overlooked as potential cuts. Minnesota, in the current economic climate, can't afford to overlook them.