"It's no secret that public employees tend to get better benefits than their private-sector counterparts. But a new report from the Labor Department this week is still striking in just how wide the gap is. As of March of this year, 89% of state and local government employees get offered some sort of retirement benefit, compared to 65% in private industry. 79% of public workers can get life insurance through work, versus 57% of private workers. 89% of government workers get paid sick leave, versus 61% in the private sector. The starkest contrast, though, is in health care. 73% of state and local government workers -- including 83% of full-time workers -- receive health benefits through their jobs. In the private sector, barely over half, 51%, of all workers get health benefits, and just under two-thirds, 64%, of full-time workers do."  MORE >>