The new 'haves' and 'have-nots' in N.C.?

The Civitas Institute is reporting a different kind of wage gap in North Carolina - a gap between government employees and private sector workers. In their weekly review today, the group said there is a widening gap between the two major classes of income earners in North Carolina.

"In the modern-day version of the 'haves' versus the 'have-nots,' state government workers earn significantly more in wages and benefits than North Carolina's private sector workers.
Indeed, the wage gap between state government employees and private sector workers in North Carolina doubled from 2000-2009.

"Data from 2009 reveal state government workers earn an average wage of $44,158, compared to the private sector's average wage of $39,350, a difference of 12.2 percent. The 2009 wage gap was double the 6 percent pay differential from 2000, when average state employee wages were $32,832 compared to average private sector earnings of $30,977. An increase in state government employee average salaries of 34.5 percent from 2000 to 2009 - compared to just 27 percent for the private sector - accounts for the widening pay gap," the report said.

Read more at www.nccivitas.org.