Rather than pay all state employees a competitive wage, Gov. Henry McMaster wants to eliminate state income taxes for retired military veterans, law enforcement officers, firefighters and other peace officers.

In fact, the governor is of the mindset that paying state employees a competitive wage is next to impossible. According to Gov. McMaster, “We probably never will have enough money in the government, the various government systems, the retirement systems, to pay these men and women that we treasure so, what they’re worth.”

He goes as far as to suggest that the income tax exemption would be a selling point when trying to recruit officers. This trick-bag approach is supposed to attract new officers who won’t even realize the nominal benefit (about $713 a year for younger retirees and $102 a year for those 65 or older) until they have devoted 25 years or more of service to the state.

Despite his use of words like “treasure,” the message conveyed by the governor’s proposal is that state employees are not a priority.

The state has a responsibility to provide capable and competent personnel to deliver critical services and meet all of its infrastructure demands, yet it is continuing to operate off a state employee classification and compensation system that was established in 1995 when the minimum wage was $4.25 per hour. State agency directors, professional research analysts, even state employees themselves have called for paying state employees a competitive wage.

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SC Gov. McMaster wants pay raises for some state workers, tax cuts for all

They ‘put their lives on the line for us.’ SC Gov. McMaster wants to cut their taxes

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Gov. McMaster clearly understands the importance of paying employees a fair wage. He recently praised Nephron Pharmaceutical Corp. for awarding a 5 percent pay raise to all of its non-commission employees, who earn on average $70,000 per year. So why not champion the same for state employees? All state employees.

Like first responders, many of our state employees put their lives in jeopardy on a daily basis to carry out the critical and necessary functions of the state.

Every day, in all kinds of weather, professionals at the Transportation Department build, repair and inspect our state’s roadway system, while motorists speed past within inches of them — some under the influence or distracted. Without these men and women, law enforcement officers wouldn’t be able to respond to emergencies.

Similarly, professionals at the Department of Social Service continually put their lives in jeopardy, while managing the highest caseloads in the country, to ensure the well-being of our most at-risk infants, youths and seniors. Last year, South Carolina ranked second-worst in the nation in protecting its elderly population. It ranked 49th for elder abuse, gross neglect and exploitation complaints. South Carolina also scored among the 10 worst for violent crimes, immunizations, low birth-weight babies, infectious diseases, premature death and mental health.

Like their law-enforcement counterparts, DSS professionals routinely enter volatile domestic situations and high-crime communities in order to monitor compliance with state law. In fact, it is often their face-to-face investigations that provide law enforcement officials with information about potential crimes.

There is some degree of danger throughout state government, whether it’s at the Department of Health and Environmental Control, Mental Health, Disabilities and Special Needs or Alcohol and Other Drug Abuse Services or the state’s Emergency Management Division. Each division has a mission that contributes to the quality of life for South Carolina’s residents.

How can Gov. McMaster ignore these men and women?

If you “treasure” something, you make it a priority.

It’s time for our governor, and the General Assembly, to hear the alarm, and act to ensure that all state employees are paid a competitive salary.