[quote=CA renter]
If any of the complainers think these employees are overpaid and underworked, by all means…step up to the plate.

What’s funny is that police and fire departments couldn’t find enough qualified candidates during the boom times. [/quote]

‘Qualified’ being the keyword.

[quote=CA renter]
The nature of these jobs (very specialized training that cannot be transferred from jobs outside of these sectors), and the costs required to recruit and train new employees, means the govt employers cannot afford a high turnover rate. They need people who will stay there through the ups and downs of the economic cycles. That means they’ll appear underpaid during the good times, and overpaid during the bad times.[/quote]

Bull.

How many years of training would a returning veteran need to learn how to put out a fire?
The government can train a 17-year old dropout to kill people using very expensive equipment in several weeks, yet it cannot teach him how to handle a hose?