I spent 21 years of my career working in IT for two Colorado state agencies. I also worked for two private-sector companies for 16 years combined, before and after those government jobs. The differences I experienced in benefits, pay and perks between the private and public sector gigs could not be more stark.

The private sector paid significantly more and offered benefits, big and small, that the public sector agencies I worked for were unable to match, either legally or financially. So why, someone might ask, would anyone work for the government given these disparities? Well, for one, from a selfish perspective, as a state employee I enjoyed better job security, despite the two furloughs I had to endure during bad budget years. I considered that job security a tradeoff for the smaller paychecks I got compared to what I could have made in the private sector. But there was also the sense that I was working for something bigger than just a paycheck. A sense that my work had a positive impact on our constituents, that feeling being an intangible benefit that neither of my private sector jobs provided.

So, I feel for the federal government employees who are now receiving pink slips without much notice or due process. The workforce downsizing measures currently underway by the feds are ostensibly being done for a good cause. There is little doubt our country is in financially dire straits right now, and cutting payroll is a legitimate way to address that issue. But the factually and legally dubious manner in which it is being done is disheartening. The implications being made are that these employees are not only expendable but that their jobs are unworthy of federal spending. It’s unfortunate, and dangerous, that this administration is using a sledgehammer approach to its downsizing efforts when a more thoughtful and cautious methodology might be better suited.

Summit County and other non-federal government entities across the country are understandably concerned over the potential loss of federal workforce resources due to these cost-cutting measures. These cuts will have an impact on the quality and safety of life in our area in numerous ways, many of which I’m sure have yet to be identified. The cuts will also result in us seeing friends, relatives, and acquaintances losing their jobs through no fault of their own.

In my time in state government we frequently partnered with sister federal agencies, and I can tell you that it was never my experience that there was widespread over-employment going on in any of those departments. So, the cavalier way in which the Feds are going about this reduction in their workforce is alarming to me. And it’s obvious to me that these cuts and other moves being made against federal agencies that Summit County depends on (the U.S. Forest Service, the U.S. Department of Education, the Federal Emergency Management Agency) will inevitably have an impact on the lives of Summit County residents.

• Think we’re gonna get help from the Feds with our housing issues? The cuts to the Forest Service haven’t yet directly affected the workforce housing partnership between the USFS and Dillon on the 11-acre Dillon Work Center northeast of the intersection of U.S. Highway 6 and Lake Dillon Drive. But it seems likely that staffing cuts in that agency (roughly 3,400 employees) might slow progress on such efforts, not to mention the impact the layoffs will have on visitor safety in our national parks.
• There are also food safety and epidemiologic issues to consider due to cuts to U.S. Department of Agriculture employees.
• Impacts on disaster recovery efforts should FEMA be abolished as has been suggested will also plague states. This issue should be especially concerning to Summit County residents given the potential for wildfires, including mega-wildfires, in Colorado’s mountain and Front Range communities.
• Efforts at disease mitigation and prevention will also be impacted given the layoffs at governmental medical research agencies. This should be worrisome to Summit County residents given the number of visitors we host every year. After all, the first instance of COVID in Colorado was diagnosed in a visitor who had recently traveled to our area from overseas.
• And don’t hold your breath on when you’ll get that tax refund back from the IRS given the recent layoff of thousands in that workforce.

Whoever thinks that trying to provide government services with fewer staff and dwindling budgets is in the best interests of Summit County and/or our country has probably never had to deal with the reality of doing so. The unconventional and possibly illegal way in which this downsizing is being accomplished only adds insult to the injuries being inflicted on our society. This administration seems willing to do anything, including cutting necessary positions and suspending services for the needy, to address our national debt crisis. That is, anything but raise revenue.

Tony Jones' column "Everything in Moderation" publishes biweekly on Thursdays in the Summit Daily News. Jones is a veteran of the IT industry and has worked in the public and private sectors. He lives part-time in Summit County and Denver. Contact him at eimsummit@gmail.com.