The union contract for the safety workers now being negotiated by the CCSD. And starting this year, public agencies must disclose on their balance sheet the amount of debt owed to employees for all those post retirement benefits.
This unfunded debt will be in the millions. Recently the city of Vallejo filed bankruptcy because of their union contracts. Police and firefighting salaries, pensions and overtime consume more than 70 percent of the city’s $89 million general fund budget. That’s higher than the 60 percent average throughout the state, according to the League of California Cities. Bloomberg.com
“Vallejo is broke, and other cities and counties may be close behind, because their personnel costs–salary and benefits for current employees and retirees–are higher than they can afford. While decisions at the state level are partly to blame, ultimate responsibility for the mismatch of revenue and expenses rests with local elected officials who, meeting in secret, have managed to avoid public discussion of the true cost and fiscal impact of the pay deals that they have approved.” Peter Scheer The Huffington Post.
To our own CCSD board and staff: What is the cost of the 3% at 50 retirement benefit currently promised, does it mean the employee will retire extremely young (compared to the rest of us), make more money in retirement than he made actually working (have cost of living adjustment for the rest of his life, and then are these benefits transferable to his spouse for the rest of the wife’s life?) Will the new contract be justified by the usual trick of basing everything on the “industry standard”, rather than what the citizens of Cambria can afford? What are the true costs of the total compensation package? Overtime, base salary, medical reimbursement, medical insurance, dental, life, retirement, longevity, cost of living, clothing allowance, education, and on and on.
Are health and medical benefits paid for the employee, his family and into retirement? What will the cost of this be? (I understand our attorney adopted several of his grandchildren, are they included in his post retirement benefits, along with his own benefits since he celebrated his retirement several months ago?)
Aren’t we actually paying for two sets of employees and maybe even three, as people are living longer and longer? Retired and active employees. Aren’t the real wages we pay to an employee almost double what it appears on paper?
Does the recently approved budget include the possible increases in salary that are currently being “negotiated” ? These are only a few of the questions I hope the Board is getting answers for.
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Last 5 posts by charlotte
- No Water, No Development
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