If Canadians ever wonder why it is so difficult to reform government spending, there's a simple reason: government employee unions.
A good example (if one can call it that) is the issue of growing government sector pension costs and the outright resistance from the unions to address the problem.
Some specifics. In January, Newfoundland and Labrador's auditor general Terry Paddon noted how unfunded employee pension benefits make up more than 60 per cent of that province's net debt and amounted to a $5.6 billion liability.