A two-year wage freeze on the broader public sector is needed to balance the books and help the battered economy recover with one million new jobs over the next eight years, says PC Leader Tim Hudak.

Campaigning in the Thornhill riding north of Toronto, Hudak said the public sector must do its part to help the province wipe out the $12.5 billion budget deficit and create new jobs in the private sector.

“Private-sector workers are facing higher hydro bills and taxes while working longer hours for stagnant pay,” said Hudak.

“At the same time, government workers have it better than ever, with 97,000 of them already making six figure salaries. That’s why I am going to freeze wages for all government workers. Starting with politicians. Starting with me.”

Hudak and the Tories are trying to tap into what many pollsters see as a growing divide in the province between private-sector workers whose living standards have been eroded in a restructuring economy and public sector workers whose numbers have grown since the Liberals took power in 2003.

The Tory million jobs plan proposes to cut 100,000 jobs in the broader public sector over four years – 10 per cent of the total – to balance the books. That would save $100 million this year and up to $600 million by 2017-2018.

The wage freeze would also save $450 million this year and affect the paycheques of nurses, teachers, doctors, fire fighters, police and others of the 1.1 million workers in the broader public sector.

Hudak said it would also save $2.1 billion a year in wages starting in 2015-2016 and help restore the province's economy.

“For the next two years, it does not matter if you are a politician, union leader, or senior bureaucrat, if you come asking for a raise – the answer will be ‘NO,'” said Hudak.

“I will close and lock the vault door. I won’t ask taxpayers for another $2 billion in taxes just so we can give 1.1 million government workers another raise."

Seen: Wage freeze needed to boost the economy, says Hudak

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