Outraged Over a City Hall Perk

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Editor:

Re: City Hall Flexes Its Schedule

Our city council, directed by City Manager Pietig, is at it again.  This time, under the guise of “very serious issues with retention and recruits”, they are giving city employees not only pay raises, but 3 day weekends twice a month. Wow, sign me up.

Only in the land of government does this happen, city councils’ running amok freely giving away other people’s money. On the same day this article came out, the Orange County Register ran an article stating it’s still an “employer’s market.” The tired and abused argument that the city needs this new employee perk to recruit and retain employees is hogwash. The last entry level job opening the city had for a glorified cashier had over 500 applicants. Over 500!

All recent studies show that government workers are paid more than their private counterparts for comparable positions, and private sector employment can’t begin to match the still overly generous defined pension benefits that are drowning our state at every government level in ever-increasing unfunded liability. And now the city council wants to give away 3 day weekends, taking away 2 additional work days a month without any reduction in compensation for the reduction in service? How is this OK?

Kelly Boyd’s comment that it’s better to give the employees a free three-day weekend than risk poor service is priceless. Sure, rather than have a reduced staff let’s just give ’em all the day off, forget about the people who live here and pay the city’s salaries. Way to go Boyd. How generous you are with other people’s money.

Doesn’t anyone question why we are still paying for defined pensions for the city employees? Why hasn’t our city manager proposed that all new hires go with 401(k) plans? This would be the fiscally prudent thing to do for our city, and isn’t that what the city manager was hired to do?

Pietig’s comment “we’re behind the marketplace with our scheduling” is also priceless.  The government marketplace is out of control, and the outrageous “other cities are doing it” is not justification for the continued thievery. And that’s what it is – government and unions stealing from the taxpayers, extracting salaries, pensions and other benefits for government workers that no private employer in their right fiscal mind would approve.

Thank you, Toni Iseman, for being the sole voice of reason. Unfortunately everyone else is drinking the Kool-Aid.

 

Jennifer Welsh Zeiter, Laguna Beach

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2 COMMENTS

  1. My personal opinion is the perk is actually a way for this city to save money in a time of Great Recession that is for the sake of public moral and the psychological well being of the economy , is not used as a selling point. I do not believe Mr Pietig comments held any malcontent.
    I accept your personal opinion as one based in vigilance and questioning concern over our governing representatives actions and discussions, this shows our represenatives that we are not just bystanders but willing participants to their governmental process.

  2. Hector wrote, “this perk is actually a way for this city to save money in a time of Great Recession.” Maybe…but we aren’t in a recession.

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