Public sector salaries matter. But not in the way that many employed by the state government think. State employees often complain their salaries do not match those in the private sector. But a quick search of the state’s labor statistics puts that lie to rest. And a new study from the Maryland Public Policy Institute shows that state government compensation in 2007 was 11.1 percent higher than the average private sector job and has been higher since 1981. That is nearly four times higher than the national compensation ratio of public sector jobs to private sector ones of 2.8 percent, according to the study.

The biggest contributor to the ratio is the generous benefits paid to Maryland state government workers in the form of health insurance and pension benefits. The study found that in 2007, state government benefits were $13,387 per job while private sector benefits were $8,604. In other words, state government workers received benefits worth 55.6 percent more than those in the private sector.