Sarge as a Garbage Guy in NY City?

 Because of manpower cuts in NY City (remember, everything is marginally functioning, so tax revenue isn't there)....the city has cut back on garbage collection.

So yesterday, the Governor (Cuomo) said that he's open to the idea of bringing in NY state National Guardsmen....to collect garbage.

I sat and pondered over this.

Having spent 22 years in the Air Force, and known a number of Guardsmen over the years, I'd generally say that 10-percent might go along with this order, but the rest would be like....if you got money to pay us as Guardsmen to collect garbage....you ought to have money to pay real garbagemen to do the work.

But here's the honest truth....the normal average salary for a NY City garbage guy is $59k a year.  If you count in over-time?  Some might admit that they clear around $5k to $8k a year on extra over-time.  

Your average Army E4?  $30.6k a year.  Your average Army E2? $22.6k a year. 

So the reality is that by dumping the 22-year old 'kid' onto this job....you are saving $29k. 

Putting Sarge in as the driver and having 'Private Snuffy' and 'Private Marvin' as his crew?  You just saved in the range of $100k on salary requirements for one truck.

Managing Sarge, with his two privates?  If you figure ten trucks....there's probably one Guard Captain.  Course, in his case....he was probably a manager of some concrete plant....making $100k a year, and this is a huge disappointment being forced to work three or four months as some Guardsman, and taking a huge pay-cut.  Course, I'd say the same for Sarge and his two privates as well.

But here's the potential comedy brewing.  Out of a thousand real garbage guys laid off...you have to figure that at least ten of them probably were National Guardsmen and this order to potentially report for duty....to do your garbage job for 30-percent less pay....is going to frustrate you to a massive extent.

Could this whole thing turn into a major mess....with Guardsmen doing the job not just for three months, but maybe for an entire year?  That's the scenario that I'd worry about.  And frankly, Sarge....Snuffy and Marvin....ought to be standing there and asking for some bonus deal in the mix.  

What ought to happen here....some TV production company should pick out a Sarge/Snuffy/Marvin crew and just accompany them in a Seinfeld-type way, and run a regular series on Guardsmen as garbage guys.  It might be fairly entertaining.