Just one comment about the retiree healthcare. Many public employers began doing away with this back in the 90s. I don’t know of any newer hires (since ~ the mid-90s) in local government who get retiree healthcare. I used to work for one of the largest municipal employers in the state, and even they were phasing it out back then. I’d like to know where they got their 90% from. Perhaps they’re talking about older employees who were grandfathered in, but the newer employees are not getting it for the most part…at least not from any public employer that I’m aware of.
As for public/private employee turnover rates, the #1 reason *by far* that you see a lower turnover rate in most public professions is the pension benefits; medical benefits and general job security follow closely behind. Without defined benefit pensions, there would be a much, much higher quit rate. Like BG mentioned, once you reach a certain level, it’s not an easy decision to “lateral over” to another department or employer because of the probation period and the possible loss of seniority, etc.
I’d also like to add, as someone who has worked in both the public and private sectors, the standards for working in the public sector tend to be much higher than for similar positions in the private sector. They usually require more education, more experience, and tend to do more background checks, psychological testing, pre-employment medical exams, etc. than employers in the private sector do.
In my personal experience, public employees tend to be harder working, take fewer breaks, remain “on task” more, and tend to be more trustworthy. Contrary to the myths and stories, there is a LOT of accountability in the public sector; far more than what I’ve seen in the private sector. It’s more bureaucratic in public service, but that’s often because they take great pains to avoid corruption and reduce liability. If you screw up in the private sector, you might lose your job; screw up in the pubic sector, and you might end up in jail.
Though it’s difficult to quantify, public employers focus more on “integrity” and the character of a potential employee because of the nature of the work (in major positions of trust) and the liability issues involved with public work. For example, I knew someone who had once gotten a ticket (don’t remember if it was a ticket or arrest???) for urinating in public (in bushes, no public restroom, not being belligerent or anything…just really bad timing). When he applied for a job in public service many years later, he had to jump through major hoops, getting personal references to vouch for his character, then basically writing an essay about what had happened and how he would never let something like that ever happen again, etc. Another person I know got a DUI when he was very young, and had to jump through similar hoops when applying for a job *decades* later. You are definitely scrutinized more when applying for a job in the public sector, and one could easily argue that this, in itself, would warrant a premium of sorts.
