Standing applause to Dauphin County Commissioner Lowman Henry for his tough stand last week on overtime pay for county employees. Dauphin County is expecting to pay out about $5 million for extra hours worked. Henry has a tough battle ahead of him as he tackles a deeply engrained "entitlement" mentality when it comes to government service.

Unfortunately, the "I’m entitled" point of view is very popular at all levels of government employment, although Harrisburg’s City Hall crew consistently does the best with professional, courteous service. The same cannot be said of some other individuals who earn their pay and benefits from public tax money — often at annual salaries and benefits more generous than the hard-working people who generate those taxes.

Of course, I’ve heard it said many times from government employees — especially state workers — that they give back by paying taxes. True statement. It is also a true statement that, by and large, they do not generate the wealth from which taxes are paid into public coffers from which, in turn, are paid their salaries and benefits. Therein lies the real difference.

And I don’t think I’m being a kurmudgeon.

Just this week I heard a state employee say loudly, in a fashion not meant to be a private comment, that she resented being asked what her "goals" were on an employment evaluation. "Getting my paycheck and going home. That’s my goal," she said, as if incapable of understanding that someone else, a taxpayer, for example, might have a higher standard in mind. She thinks she is "entitled."

A while back, I picked up the telephone to request information from a government agency. I delivered a well-modulated textbook introduction of myself and my informational needs to an impatient state employee. Maybe I interrupted her nap. I mentioned at the end of my request that I had often relied on information from her office in the past. Her reply? "I’ve been here 12 years and I don’t know who you are." I asked her if "knowing" a caller was the agency’s criteria for helping. It went downhill from there. What surprised me was the off-handed way in which the employee handled the situation — as if there was no consequence. So why even try to be of service?

Another time, I had a state employee annoyed with me because he had to interrupt his conversation with a friend in order to direct me to a cabinet member’s office. After patiently waiting for him to come up for air, I’d asked for directions. Unfortunately, I couldn’t understand his "fast rap" delivery, he was speaking so quickly. My second request for directions really made him angry; he waved me away with his hand as if he didn’t have time to assist. Again, I thought, no accountability. So why worry about being of service?

Maybe things would change if, at least once in a while, taxpayers would, in an appropriate way, hold government employees accountable. Ask to speak to a supervisor following an unacceptable interaction. Be nice about it, but be clear it’s just not acceptable. That’s the standard out here in the private sector where we generate wealth to pay for government.