Tag Archives: compensation reform

Out of touch – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Last week’s letter from Neil Snow demonstrates how much government union members and their political supporters are out of touch with the real world where the rest of us work, produce things and pay taxes.

Snow presented ludicrous objections to, and gross misrepresentations of, Michael Robbins’ well-reasoned recommendations to reform El Segundo’s city employee union contracts to keep the city from having a financial catastrophe.

He objected to Mr. Robbins’ recommendation that city employees pay all of their pension “employee contribution,” and at least half the total contribution, which is common in private industry, instead of the city paying the entire “employee contribution” and “employer contribution.” Snow misrepresented that recommendation, claiming that Mr. Robbins wanted to make “employees pay their entire pension.”

Snow is out of touch to expect taxpayers to continue paying all of the government union members’ pension contributions, and to expect that union members should never have to contribute a single dollar into their own pensions. … Continue reading

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, El Segundo, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Out of touch – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Labor union overreach – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

For many months now, the other side has had no substantive arguments, so all they can do is throw hate speech and deceptive pseudo-quotations at me.

If having highly paid workers with tons of benefits were the key to honesty and good performance, then the term “featherbedding” would never have been invented to describe union overreach that included incompetent, lazy, disloyal, dangerous employees who are getting overpaid to do practically no work.

Would we have better, more honest firefighters by paying each one $10 million instead of $150,000 to $357,000 per year in total compensation? … Continue reading

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, Crimes, El Segundo, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Firefighters Commiting Crimes, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Labor union overreach – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Time for Real Compensation Reform – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Richard Arabian

Time for Real Compensation Reform

El Segundo voters have now soundly rejected both the Business Utility Tax Increase and Trash Fee Proposal, sending a strong and clear message to Council and unions-get our labor expenses permanently under control. Residents/ taxpayers expect and deserve public services, especially fire and police, to be provided at realistic costs, not those unions demand. We don’t support salary/benefit arrangements placing a number of employees in the top five percent income bracket nationwide, nor bloated staffing levels. We don’t wish to pay the employee share of CalPERS retirement contributions or “special pay” supplements, further spiking total compensation. Pandering to union agendas, for whatever reason, must stop now.

Strong economy or weak, budget surplus or deficit, competent management should never pay over market for labor. Why are we conspicuously above even the union-inflated salary and per capita staffing ranges of surrounding cities with which we compete? … Continue reading

Posted in El Segundo, El Segundo Herald Letters, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor | Tagged , , , , | Comments Off on Time for Real Compensation Reform – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Richard Arabian