2018 Property Tax

[CaptainCrunch]

Well the gifts are a choice that she makes, it would be equivalent to me buying lunch for a coworker or for their birthday and is something that I can't expect.


I respect the school supplies and food that is being bought and even the books. But I have to ask, whats the remidiation for students that are coming in without food. Its not a teachers responsibility to constantly buy lunch for students, is it a matter that as a teacher you don't want the parents to get in trouble. And is constantly buying food doing anything to get the parents help or are you just enabling the problem. Are the books that are being bought part of the school curriculum?


I've known a couple of teachers that complain about buying a lot of stuff, but it seemed like a lot of the purchases seemed to be outside of the teachers responsibility or the classes requirements.


I'm not trying to take a shot here, I'm genuinely curious about what teachers are buying and why.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by rain_e

I'm pretty sure anyone on here before 5pm is on a mental health break.

Bottom line is that I have a bunch of Key Performance indicators that I have to reach each month, I work at home, so I work voluntary longer hours so I can have a more enjoyable pace and not have a heart attack, but that's my choice.

[Locke]

Property Taxes have well and truly taken a back-seat now...

[Nufy]

Originally Posted by rain_e

I'm pretty sure anyone on here before 5pm is on a mental health break.

I'm posting from the bathroom...

[rain_e]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

I'm not trying to take a shot here, I'm genuinely curious about what teachers are buying and why.

My wife bought $100 worth of clothes for her student this year. The kid was coming to school wearing the exact same clothes everyday and being teased constantly. You can try putting a stop to teasing/bullying/etc but you can't be watching at all times. She found some 2nd hand name brand clothes from friends and then spent $100.00 for some more. Then discretely gave them to her so no one would know. Above and beyond for sure but when she tells me the story I fully support it.

I'm not sure why she did it if it was to stop the bullying, just felt sorry for the kid, or the smell but I think that the majority of people who become teachers do it because they have good hearts and want to help people/kids, oh and barely work and get summers off too.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by rain_e

My wife bought $100 worth of clothes for her student this year. The kid was coming to school wearing the exact same clothes everyday and being teased constantly. You can try putting a stop to teasing/bullying/etc but you can't be watching at all times. She found some 2nd hand name brand clothes from friends and then spent $100.00 for some more. Then discretely gave them to her so no one would know. Above and beyond for sure but when she tells me the story I fully support it.

I'm not sure why she did it if it was to stop the bullying, just felt sorry for the kid, or the smell but I think that the majority of people who become teachers do it because they have good hearts and want to help people/kids, oh and barely work and get summers off too.

But that's a pretty voluntary choice, not a purchase that she has to do just to execute her job.



And is she really helping the situation? Isn't that something that should be put back in the parents lap? I get it, she's trying to stop bullying and that's a good hearted thing, but at the end of the day is it helping, or enabling?


And voluntary spending to me isn't the same as necessary spending because the school isn't supplying something essential to the job.

[PsYcNeT]

You gotta bootstrap thoae parents into being good at parenting. Altruism is for communists.

[Slava]

I know this is the property tax thread, but I don’t where else to ask this. What do people do for year end gifts for their child’s teachers?

[CaptainCrunch]

No but buying food and clothing isn't part of the job description of being a teacher. And let me ask this. If the parents area struggling financially, are you really helping them out by feeding their kids?


I just hear all the time from teachers that they're spending money teaching, but I want to separate what's necessary and what's voluntary and outside of the job or supporting what they're teaching.


I think its a pretty fair question.


But thanks for the drive by

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Slava

I know this is the property tax thread, but I don’t where else to ask this. What do people do for year end gifts for their child’s teachers?

Here's an apple snapper head.

[1991 Canadian]

These are net operating budget numbers pulled from each municipalities budget PDF documents for 2019:

Calgary: $4.09 billion / 1.36 million people: $3007 per capita
Edmonton: $2.98 billion / 981k people: $3037 per capita
Red Deer: $369.8 million / 103k people: $3590 per capita
Lethbridge: $405 million / 99k people: $4090 per capita
Wood Buffalo (Fort McMurray): $418 million / 72k people: $5805 per capita

Ottawa: $3.6 billion / 995k people: $3618 per capita
Montreal: $5.7 billion / 1.78 million people: $3202 per capita
Toronto: $13.47 billion / 2.93 million people: $4597 per capita
Vancouver: $1.53 billion / 675k people people: $2266 per capita

Based on the rhetoric I’ve heard on this issue, I fully expected Calgary to be at the top of the city spending list on a per capita basis. I'm surprised I haven't seen many city comparison numbers in the news articles I've read about the budget/tax issue. Seems like an important piece of the story to me.

I'm unlikely to get an answer here, but does anyone have an idea why Vancouver's operating budget is so low? It goes against everything I know about the "Bring Cash" province.

[Slava]

Well I think it has to do with the population used for that calculation.

[ah123]

Originally Posted by 1991 Canadian

These are net operating budget numbers pulled from each municipalities budget PDF documents for 2019:



Calgary: $4.09 billion / 1.36 million people: $3007 per capita

Edmonton: $2.98 billion / 981k people: $3037 per capita

Red Deer: $369.8 million / 103k people: $3590 per capita

Lethbridge: $405 million / 99k people: $4090 per capita

Wood Buffalo (Fort McMurray): $418 million / 72k people: $5805 per capita



Ottawa: $3.6 billion / 995k people: $3618 per capita

Montreal: $5.7 billion / 1.78 million people: $3202 per capita

Toronto: $13.47 billion / 2.93 million people: $4597 per capita

Vancouver: $1.53 billion / 675k people people: $2266 per capita



Based on the rhetoric I’ve heard on this issue, I fully expected Calgary to be at the top of the city spending list on a per capita basis. I'm surprised I haven't seen many city comparison numbers in the news articles I've read about the budget/tax issue. Seems like an important piece of the story to me.



I'm unlikely to get an answer here, but does anyone have an idea why Vancouver's operating budget is so low? It goes against everything I know about the "Bring Cash" province.

Just a guess, but I wonder if the weather there impacts their costs: they don’t have costs for snow plowing, and my guess is that the lack of extreme temperatures keeps the streets in better shape (less pothole repairs).

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Slava

I know this is the property tax thread, but I don’t where else to ask this. What do people do for year end gifts for their child’s teachers?

Sweet Stock Tip? Apple? Make certain uncomfortable past transgressions disappear? Get creative! The sky's the limit!

[81MC]

Originally Posted by Nufy

Not really.

How is not losing anything a concession when private workers have faced massive layoffs and salary roll backs.

Almost everyone I knew at Stantec took a pay cut in 2015 / 16 and are still trying to make that back.

I expect it was the same for most O&G companies.

Almost everyone I know in O&G was making money hand over fist, bonuses, ‘flex days’ and the like in the good times. I don’t know a single public employee whose ever received a bonus or a free day off (those pricks who call in sick aren’t specific to unions).

And again, not getting a raise that matches inflation is the exact same as a pay cut of the same rate as inflation.

And, if these OG forms were able to get by after all the layoffs, I’d have to wonder how many of those rolls were excessive? I sure as #### believe the public sector can trim a fair amount of fat, but that is in every single organization I know of. The difference is big boses in private firms get to still buy their flash cars while blaming layoffs on the economy. A well off private manager is considered successful, a well off public manager is considered a fat cat due for a boot...I just can’t quite understand the logic.

[accord1999]

Originally Posted by 1991 Canadian

I'm unlikely to get an answer here, but does anyone have an idea why Vancouver's operating budget is so low? It goes against everything I know about the "Bring Cash" province.

One major item (though not large enough to account for all of the difference) is transit, where funding and spending is controlled by TransLink, unlike in Calgary which is done by the City itself and included in its budget.

[Locke]

Heres the problem...

Originally Posted by 81MC

Almost everyone I know in O&G was making money hand over fist, bonuses, ‘flex days’ and the like in the good times. I don’t know a single public employee whose ever received a bonus or a free day off (those pricks who call in sick aren’t specific to unions).

And again, not getting a raise that matches inflation is the exact same as a pay cut of the same rate as inflation.

And, if these OG forms were able to get by after all the layoffs, I’d have to wonder how many of those rolls were excessive? I sure as #### believe the public sector can trim a fair amount of fat, but that is in every single organization I know of. The difference is big boses in private firms get to still buy their flash cars while blaming layoffs on the economy. A well off private manager is considered successful, a well off public manager is considered a fat cat due for a boot...I just can’t quite understand the logic.

Aside from being entirely anecdotal, which is a problem.

The primary issue is that one sector of the economy is influenced by economic fluctuations while the other one isnt.

Do you see the problem? One sector literally pays for the other and when things arent going well the gravy train stops rolling in for the side thats doing all of the paying while the other side move along as though nothing is wrong.

Both sides of the Ledger. Both sides have to be affected and adapt.

[rain_e]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

But that's a pretty voluntary choice, not a purchase that she has to do just to execute her job.



And is she really helping the situation? Isn't that something that should be put back in the parents lap? I get it, she's trying to stop bullying and that's a good hearted thing, but at the end of the day is it helping, or enabling?


And voluntary spending to me isn't the same as necessary spending because the school isn't supplying something essential to the job.

Completely voluntary I agree. I'm not sure how you go about putting this on the parents when I assume they don't have the money.

As for necessary spending my wife spends money on additional school supplies for the kids and books as teaching aids. Again these are voluntary. She could just use the chalk supplied by the school I guess. I'm guessing she spends about $1000 a year on these items.

[rain_e]

Originally Posted by Slava

I know this is the property tax thread, but I don’t where else to ask this. What do people do for year end gifts for their child’s teachers?

Liquor. Teachers like to drink. Teachers husband's prefer scotch specifically.

[81MC]

Locke, you actually raise a really good point. The entire thing IS anecdotal. I didnt work in a posh O&G firm, I didn’t work for cushy government job. I don’t teach children or own a restaurant. I haven’t seen the financials of every City department or the books of contracted companies. I don’t believe anyone on this board can attest to first hand knowledge of each of these environments. Every citizen is an expert on themselves, and generally totallly ignorant of anything outside of that, and you can’t fault them for it.

What I do find interesting though, is the notion that we as private workers are stuck paying while the other side just receives. Do you like driving your car in maintained roads? Because that was the result of actual work performed by actual people, government or not. Or having parks that are more than dirt parking lots? Pathways? Bylaws to prevent your neighbour from having 20 cars on stands etc.
Sure, that money comes from citizens, but even those public employees have to pay tax just like you or I. It’s just that someone pays you to do something that doesn’t affect everyone, where the public service provides services to everyone. I think?