The public safety net for public workers, protected by unions and usually provided for life, is starting to fray, as leaders across the country have advocated more aggression in spending cuts to balance struggling state budgets.

In moves designated as union busting by Pres. Barack Obama, Republican leaders from states such as Wisconsin, Michigan and Ohio have threatened massive layoffs of public workers, including teachers, administrators and even police and fire fighters.

This hasn’t been a popular move – public opinion polls show support for the unions. Thousands of people have rallied in protests against plans by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder and legislators in Ohio.

Walker, taking the strongest stance to end most collective bargaining as his state faces a $3.6 billion shortfall in the two-year budget, has taken the most criticism, and public liberties are being curtailed in the state capital to end sit-ins. With 14 Democrat legislators having fled to Illinois to avoid a vote on the matter, Walker is threatening to lay off thousands of state workers and make drastic cuts if the lawmakers don’t return to help balance the budget.

At a time when job loss is the one fundamental that has stymied commercial real estate growth in all major and secondary markets, these budget fights by local, state and the national government stand as a possible setback to an economic recovery – which is ironically needed to help boost finances.

The concerns don’t end at state employment, however. Due to the cuts also threatened by states in local government revenue sharing, many, many cities across the country are considering bankruptcy as a sole financial option – a move sure to disrupt contracts, financing and even lead to thousands more jobs lost.

Even business-friendly tax cuts are taking a hit in the state budget process. In Michigan, for example, Snyder has proposed to eliminate guaranteed funding for economic development incentives for projects such as brownfield cleanup, and also will likely eliminate the filmmaking industry in the state through limits on tax rebates to the movie industry.

Some say handouts to public workers and tax-rebate-seeking businesses need to end in this era of economic instability, where normal Joes who work in the private sector have already seen cuts to pensions, benefits and pay.

This “why them and not me” attitude is understandable, but also short-sighted, and fails to recognize the impact that massive job loss will have in possibly creating a double-dip recession. As states have competed mightily for companies that bring in jobs with headquarters moves, they need to look at how keeping public employees paid well could keep the economy rolling – and increased unemployment could derail it entirely.

And for one massive example, look at Washington, DC, the most bloated government entity in the country – and also enjoying some of the highest asking office rents and lowest vacancy rates. The federal government was the most active occupier of space last year, leasing nearly 4.5 million square feet in the Washington, DC market, according to a recent Jones Lang LaSalle report.

These leases provide space for workers who are going to spend money on retail and residential in the city, contributing back to the city's economy, right now one of the strongest on the planet.

Not a bad outcome for a handout.