Our Opinion: State workers kick off charitable campaign

Saturday, August 25, 2012

State employees, thanks a million.

Wednesday marked the kick-off for the Missouri State Employees Charitable Campaign (MSECC), which raised more than $1 million in charitable donations last year.

The $1,077,000 total also marked the 11th year the campaign has exceeded $1 million and the sixth-highest combined giving in the history of the campaign, now in its 27th year.

The campaign, according to its website, is organized and administered by the Office of Administration and directed by a six-member executive committee and the MSECC steering committee, which is composed of representatives from each department of state government and the offices of elected officials.

The campaign “provides a unified fundraising campaign that demonstrates state employees’ generosity, concern and compassion for others,” said Doug Nelson, acting commissioner of the Office of Administration. “For the past several years, state employees have done exceptionally well in donating to their favorite charities in record numbers.”

Among those numbers from last year’s campaign:

• Contributions were received from 8,411 donors, an increase of more than 2 percent.

• The average donation amount was $128.

• Charities in Central Missouri received $414,929.

• The United Way of Central Missouri, which will kick off its area campaign Thursday, received $137,870.

A campaign of this magnitude also relies on gifts of time and effort. Trained coordinators serve a valuable role in increasing awareness, organizing the campaign at the agency level and informing employees about the human needs being served by charitable organizations.

The tradition of generosity established through the charitable campaign is yet another indicator of state employees’ valuable contributions to their fellow Missourians.

More like this story

eileen10 8 months, 4 weeks ago

What a great bunch of people! Now if they'd raise their salary that would be great because they certainly deserve it.

spelchek 8 months, 4 weeks ago

@eileen Don't worry there's a comittee working on finding out why their pay is so low. And if they're lucky they should have the answer soon (few years). And then there will be a comittee to figure out how to give them more money. Then a comittee to........

tonto_goldberg 8 months, 4 weeks ago

The last time any of them commented on their progress, the committee was still trying to find a few state employee groups that weren't paid at the lowest rate among the fifty states. They are really big on wishful thinking.

hater1234 8 months, 4 weeks ago

I agree, that paid committe has been in place for almost a year now. Since the time the members were chosen, there hasn't been anything accomplished. But in the meantime, the water, trash, sewer, and electric (to name a few) have all raised their rates & still no raise in income. Great committee.

JCLifer 8 months, 4 weeks ago

The committee is looking at ways to cut benefits before they give a raise. Things like free parking may be cut to give state employees a raise.

You just know the committee probably met only once or twice last year and they haven't met since.

Paroquet 8 months, 4 weeks ago

They're trying to find a way to say that MO state employees aren't the lowest in the nation. They're not at the bottom of the list. They ARE the bottom of the list. Used to be MS, but they saw fit to raise their compensation to just above Missouri's. Two different entities have already made this determination. Pay the new committee enough, and you'll get the answer you want. It wouldn't surprise me if they factored in environmental factors as compensation. You know, cleaner air than Stl or KC. -FYI, the charitable campaign happens every year, and the charities' % administration costs are all disclosed in the pamphlet, so the donors know how much of their contribution goes to their cause.

eileen10 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Thank you spelchek. I heard you loud and clear. Forever and a day.Holy kookamonga.

connor 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Let's take a trip out to any of the medium to large scale employers in and around Jefferson City. Especially one of them that hire a large number of women fresh out of high school and see how much those employees are making and whether they wouldn't give their right eye to get a cushy state job.

Once these state jobs are in line and equal to the private sector jobs around the state and especially in the area the positions are located in then it will be time to talk about a raise. Maybe.

What sort of pay other states give their employees has no bearing on what Missouri's employees should get especially at the entry and non-degree level. State employees should be forced to live under the same economic status as the average State citizen.

And why we are at it the little internal State mandate that gives educational equivalent per year of employment for some typist or clerk is complete nonsense as well. As it stands now someone can enter the state employment system and move up to a degree level position within four years while being paid to do it.

Yet they want a raise?

connor 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Graceful, Oh I know with so many family incomes intertwined with the state employee salaries mentioning such things is pure evil around Jefferson City. Even people who are normally pretty reasonable politically become foaming mouth angry when they think their easy salary could be equalized to the average. Luckily those just around and directly benefiting from State government salaries are far from being the entire state and it is pretty hard to make those minimum wage earners in the rest of the State agree with it.

Fair is Fair State employee salaries should be tethered completely to the private sector pay. No more no less.

JCLifer 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Absolutely no disagreement here. Market-level salaries would be very appropriate.

Paroquet 8 months, 4 weeks ago

When I was a state employee here in JC, my salary compared to that which provided the same services in the private sector, here in JC, benefits included, was 53% lower. Your average turn-over with the State, among degreed professionals, is about 2.5yrs. About the time they learn the job well, the agency ends up hiring another head to train because they can't retain accomplished staff.

In my case, I left because the politicians in congress and their lobbyists made it so that politics was injected from top to bottom in favor of special interests and it inhibited the agency in performing its state mandated function. Primarily, it was the Republicans. Primarily they protected big business. The little guy got hosed.

JCLifer 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Connor may have a good point. My relatives tell me the pay is pathetically low for degrees emplorees who are not division chiefs, but they say that clerks and secretaries easily make thirty thousand dollars even without a degree. That is awful.

connor 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Are there two JCLifer s on this forum? Because unless sleep deprivation caused me to read the wrong name I would have sworn you had the complete opposite opinion last night Lifer.

JCLifer 8 months, 4 weeks ago

No, you raised some good points.
Market equal pay makes so much sense. If they did implement market level pay, I suspect you are right: a bunch of secretaries and low level clerks will take cuts in pay; a bunch of lower level degreed employees and supervisors are gonna get considerable increases, as will corrections officers, nurses, and skilled technicians. Market level pay makes a lot of sense

connor 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Fair enough Lifer.

My guess is the State gives so much weight to year for year service that the non-degreed employees end up being paid as having a degree after about 4 years or so. Just a guess mind you but I do know a number of state employees who strolled into a position listed as needing a degree with zero higher education. They were given year for year educational merit for simply working there.

bluesfan13 8 months, 4 weeks ago

That's a false statement. You can get "year-for-year" service, but not as a clerk or secretary. That is meant (for example) a bookkeeper from the private sector to be able to get an entry-level accounting job. And then perhaps four years later after doing that accounting work be able to advance to an accounting specialist. The "year for year" equivalent is for doing the type of work for the job you're applying for, NOT for any old State job that you've been doing.

connor 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Several degreed level merit positions specifically list year for year work as a typist, clerk and other non-degree positions as equivalent to the same years in higher education. I will qualify that as information I personally viewed over five years ago though so it is of course possible they have since changed it.

eileen10 8 months, 4 weeks ago

My daughter worked at a maximum security prison in Texas and made good money with pretty good benefits. Upon moving here she began work at the new prison East of town. She's been there several years and doesn't make much plus the benefits suck. I worked inFulton as a nurse in a nursing home and the pay was very good as were the benefits but the same job here in Jeff paid a lot less.

RobHunterJohnson 8 months, 4 weeks ago

Grace, Why is it always Socialism? The reason the state pay is held down, They have been broke through several adminstrations? Hancck's balanced budget plan? We came off of Bond and Ashcroft terms, then came Hancck amendment and the rest is history. Low wages and benefits, poor roads, j turns instead of over passes, roundabouts instead of lights, Gas tax lowest in the midwest, poor roads/bridges, and we do not get those little checks back from the state no more? Now there is the Tea Party, if the State Employees, (Missouri Voters) are following that MANTRA they will get what they have sowed. Low wages, benefits that continue to increase on their end, (the state should keep pace, and not take it from their underpaid employees backs), lack of services such as Roads and Bridges, and where is my 70 mile an hour road on 54 since they put in those j turns? When Schoolastic added on years ago, the News Tribune article asked how will they find all the workers? If you will pay them a good wage, you can man your job, I do not know what the wage and benefit is at Schoolastic, but they have manned their business. Rob

JCsleeper 8 months, 4 weeks ago

This speaks volumes of the character of state employees. After years little or no raises, they are still magnanimous enough to contribute to charities from their meager wages. As the cost of everything increases, they certainly deserve more than a lip-service committee, and free hotdogs once a year.

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