City of Palo Alto Faces Strike – $139,907 Average Total Compensation Not Enough

City of Palo Alto Faces Strike – $139,907 Average Total Compensation Not Enough | Union Watch:
"The problem with this, of course, is that as soon as one city raised their wages and benefits to make their jobs more attractive than the neighboring city, then the neighboring city had to endure the clamor from their unions to keep pace.
The result?
We have workers in Palo Alto, whose average pay and benefits were $139,907 during 2012, claiming they don’t make enough money, and so they’re considering going on strike.
One problem with media coverage of these strikes is that local newspapers rarely bother to report what the employees are actually making in total pay and employer-paid benefits. 
And if these reporters do take the time to report pay, they usually report averages from the State Controller’s “Government Compensation in California” website."