Many government workers have been largely shielded from the recession up until this point.  Federal dollars pumped into state coffers to help preserve the status quo have run out.  Because the private sector has been laying off the last two years, State and Federal tax revenues have plummeted resulting in necessary legislative actions to reduce costs.  Protests similar to The Wisconsin Teacher Strike are sure to spread across the country as cuts are made.  Relatively plush government compensation packages and pensions that are no longer typical in the private sector for the average Joe are harder to justify with such large budget deficits