RALEIGH – Yesterday I observed that North Carolina has more public employees per capita than any other state in the region – and, indeed, exceeds the national average in this regard. But I left out the “flow” in this “stock and flow” equation. That is, not only are our governments overstaffed by regional and national standards, but they have posted some of the most rapid growth rates in the country in recent years.
From 1996 to 2001, the number of state employees in North Carolina grew by 12.5 percent, ranking us 8th in the nation in workforce expansion. Our local governments added 22.3 percent more employees during the same period, the 3rd highest growth rate in the nation. These data are reported by the U.S. Census Bureau.
My colleague Greg Kaza at the Arkansas Policy Foundation pointed me to some recent employment data that show how this trend has extended into 2002. You can see it here.
From September 2001 to February 2002, North Carolina’s private sector lost 22,100 jobs. Particularly hard hit were manufacturing (12,100 net reduction in jobs) and services (7,600 jobs). But government in North Carolina added 7,600 jobs during the same period.
Remember, September 2001 was also the month that Gov. Mike Easley and the North Carolina General Assembly enacted one of the largest tax increases in state history. So at the same time that government was imposing new costs on a weakening economy – you can’t blame the tax hike for the entire 22,100 job loss, of course, but it likely was a contributing factor – it was adding thousands of new employees.
Whatever words you choose to describe state and local government in North Carolina, “austerity” should not be on the list. While the private sector really is downsizing and adjusting to changing conditions, the public sector is taking even more money away from the people who earned it in order to continue its seemingly unstoppable growth.