Illinois state workers make too much money.
Nonsense. In fact, Illinois has fewer state workers per capita than any other state in the country except Florida. According to labor expert Robert Bruno of the University of Illinois, "State and local government workers in Illinois earn incomes that are 13.5 percent less on average than workers in the private sector with a comparable education... When you control for education and other demographic variables, it turns out that public sector workers suffer a wage penalty. So it's a myth that state workers in Illinois are overpaid, and to lay the blame for the state's budget woes and underfunded pensions on state workers is just plain false."
Rauner has, however, hired a $100,000 a year chief of staff for his wife, who makes virtually no public appearances and has no official duties. He also pays his top staff 36% more than the previous governor did.