The Plum Government Jobs (and Their Friends with Benefits)

The Plum Government Jobs (and Their Friends with Benefits)
When the best jobs in town are government jobs and bikies begin to infiltrate the unions to help themselves and their political allies secure lucrative government contracts, shutting out and shutting down competition to line the political class's pockets and creating inflation in the process, making the private sector poorer, the question needs to be asked: who is policing the government, and how much longer can the giant Ponzi pyramid scheme continue?

Bangladesh – Riots for Government Jobs?

In Bangladesh this past week, student riots resulted in 150 deaths and significant unrest. What caused these riots? The riots were triggered by a controversial quota system for government jobs. Students do not want to start businesses or work for big corporations; they see the best-paying jobs in Bangladesh as government jobs. How did the world get to this? In Bangladesh, amid high private sector unemployment, government jobs have become increasingly prized. In 1971, a quota system was established, allocating 30% of government jobs to people (and their families) who had fought in the country’s independence.

As government jobs became more lucrative, corruption grew, with positions being given to loyalists. Bangladesh, having one of the highest rates of corruption in the world, developed a government class system. Without merit-based jobs and the quota system in place, certain citizens were left behind.

Acceleration of Government Growth

Bangladesh appears to be a warning to the rest of the world about what happens when the political class works for themselves rather than for the community they were established to govern. Governments were first created to work for the people, acting as a group, creating more power for the group while maintaining rules for law and order. Over time, with growth in population and growth in rules, governments have expanded and currently seem to be accelerating in size, creating a larger burden for society. With the private sector shrinking comparatively, the better jobs become the government jobs, creating its own issues. The original governments created rules and law and order to govern, which seemed to work well for small populations. But arguably, as populations have grown and with them governments, rules have become more complex and harder to manage over such large populations, inefficiencies in governments are not remedied like in business.

When government jobs become the best jobs you can get, it might seem apparent that the government has become ‘out of control’. It is no longer a system to help and grow an economy but rather a class overlord system, where the government overlords rule over the underclass. They no longer encourage business efficiencies and growth but rather line the political class's pockets.

The U.S. Government Sector Growth

Bangladesh is not the only country where government jobs have become the best jobs. In America, government jobs are now estimated to cost 40.5% more than the private sector, with benefits 80.3% more. With salaries and benefits far outstripping the private sector, government jobs appear to be much more attractive than private sector jobs.

With up to 60% of all jobs created over the last year being government jobs, which are costing more, it is no wonder we are seeing low productivity gains despite huge advances in technology and AI over the last decade.

As the U.S. debt clock approaches $35 trillion, and each government dollar spent only gives a return of $0.58 (down from $4 in the 1970s), how much longer can this ship stay afloat before the whole system collapses?

Victoria and the CFMEU

Government blames corporate profits, but scandals like the CFMEU in Australia highlight the contributing cause of inflation from uncontrolled, unpoliced, and unwarranted government spending. In Victoria and NSW, the corruption and infiltration of the government by the CFMEU, run by bikie gangs strong-arming companies to comply and give kickbacks in order to obtain government building contracts, will have added to inflation. Building costs are still up 30% from Covid, with the government still blaming ‘material costs’. But as lumber, gas, plastic, and steel continue to decline to the levels they were at before Covid, that excuse is wearing thin. Government spending, corruption, and labour costs are the only explainers left.

If the Government Were a Business
Governments have uncontrolled spending, which is creating uncontrolled inflation and, in the case of Bangladesh, uncontrolled corruption. As the West continues to spend with no cost oversight and governments are run as ‘jobs for the boys’ rather than as a business, it is only a matter of time before the corruption of the government creates a class system while destroying the remnants of the shrinking private sector.