2012 Public Jobs and Political Agendas: The Public Sector in an Era of Economic Stress

Abstract

In many respects, concerns and issues in managing employment arethe same in the public and private sectors. There are traditional personnelresponsibilities: recruitment, evaluation, incentives, discipline, retention,and compensation. But while these are common elements to both sectors,there are also substantial differences. Not surprisingly, a period such asthe Great Recession and its aftermath—with the obvious strains it puton public sector budgets—tends to highlight differences. Readers mayrecall a quote attributed to financier Warren Buffett that “only when thetide goes out do you discover who’s been swimming naked.” Some stateand local governments that had engaged in precarious fiscal practicesindeed faced increasing public attention as their tax revenues receded. Butthat is not the whole story.The reasons public sector workers and human resource practices are underscrutiny go beyond the impact of a recession putting the spotlight onalready strained budgets. There are important public/private differencesthat account for the special attention visited upon the public sector startingwith the Great Recession. The first of these differences was the timing ofthe response to the recession and its aftermath on revenues. The second differenceinvolves employee compensation and the contrasts between publicand private practices in that area. Intertwined with these two factors ispolitics.