Public employees

On our recent trip to California we encountered a number of state and federal employees.  We arrived at Lincoln’s home in Springfield just before closing, but we found the National Park Service guides to be welcoming and patient.  We visited the Empire State Mine in Grass Valley, where the staff was helpful, and the volunteer docent was one of the best guides I have ever encountered.

We also had lunch with our daughter and three of her friends who work at the Far Northern Regional Center in Chico  They handle clients who have mental or physical problems and need assistance.  We had lunch on a Friday--it was a furlough day that the employees must take once a month because the state has run out of money. 

None of the four women complained about the forced day off.  What they discussed was the difficulty of working with increased case loads and the problems referring clients who needed help to agencies that have cut back.  They were frustrated with their jobs not because they had more work, but because they were seeing clients who weren’t getting needed assistance.  

Public workers--teachers, liquor store operators, EPA employees, road crews--are under attack everywhere.  Defend them.  The next time someone starts in on how the road crew stands around, note that it might not be too easy working with hot tar on summer day.  When people attack teachers, mention some of the good ones you had.  Change public perception. 

In the interests of full disclosure, I was a public employee myself.  I taught at various community colleges, at Hayward State and San Francisco State, and at San Jose State for 29 years.  When I moved back to Pennsylvania, I taught at LCCC and East Stroudsburg State.  I was always aware that my paycheck was from the taxpayers, and I always did my best to give them good value.  I am proud to have been a public employee.