Our governor is trying to cut public employees wages to the minimum wage, and that is wrong.  What he’s doing is essentially holding the public employees hostage to try to leverage the legislature to act.  It’s not very different from holding a bank teller hostage to get the manager to hand over cash.

I have no doubt that California’s public employees are overpaid.  Their combination of salary, retirement, work rules, and health-care benefit is among the best in the world, and a contributor to California’s fiscal crisis.  It is also true that some of the package has been gained by holding essentially holding California citizens hostage.

Still, their methods do not justify unethical behavior by California.  If we have trouble with public employees’ their negotiating methods and pay package, we change the rules and renegotiate their salary.

We have plenty of economic pain in California, and public employees should share that pain, but holding them hostage is not the way to do it.