While we certainly need firefighters and police officers, their pay is not set by the market but by political dictate and raw union power. Politicians, especially San Diego’s union-dominated city council, don’t dare challenge the public misperceptions of public safety workers.
The fact is, police work and firefighting isn’t very dangerous. Neither occupation shows up in the top ten (timber cutters and fishermen are #1 & #2). But their deaths are big news and shapes public opinion and is easily exploited.
