Tag Archives: union corruption

Supporting Proposition 32 – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Posted on October 11, 2012 by Mike

South Bay and other California cities are at much greater risk of bankruptcy than residents are being told. Unrealistic optimistic revenue projections by city finance directors have not come to fruition, just as I warned would happen in El Segundo. City revenues actually declined.

Voters can and must help protect against city bankruptcies by voting “YES” on Proposition 32. It puts voters first by cutting the money tie between politicians and special interests and ensuring every individual contribution is made voluntarily.

Special interests have already contributed $43 million to defeat Proposition 32 with totally deceptive campaign ads. The same government employee unions that have been driving cities and school districts toward bankruptcy with astronomical and unsustainable salaries, benefits and pensions have contributed 98 percent of that campaign money ($42 million).

Proposition 32 will break the stranglehold government employee unions have on Sacramento and local government — that has blocked real and meaningful compensation and pension reform, and Senate Bill 1530, which would have made it easier to dismiss teachers who sexually abuse their students. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, Letters to the Editor, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Cut their compensation – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Mike

Hermosa Beach need not and should not contract with L.A. County for fire and police services. Ninety percent of El Segundo voters rejected Measure P, the fire union initiative to force El Segundo to contract with L.A. County for fire/paramedic services.

The real problem is wildly excessive and unsustainable firefighter and police total compensation (salaries, benefits, and pensions). That is the greatest cause of the city’s financial problems. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Hermosa Beach, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Clearing up misconceptions – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Jeff Duclos, Mayor of Hermosa Beach

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Mike

While we prefer to negotiate directly with the employee associations, rather than using the media as a forum for bargaining — a position we have consistently taken — we have a responsibility to address some disturbing misinformation that is being perpetuated by the associations’ public relations campaign.

For starters, let’s be clear on one overriding point: Public safety is, and will continue to be, the No. 1 priority for the city council. The city council is committed to continuing to have local police and fire departments. The agreement it reaches with its associations will ensure the future of local police and fire services. It is regrettable that the associations’ leaders are resorting to scare tactics and attempting to politicize the negotiations with untruthful claims that the city’s bargaining position is seeking to dismantle the police and fire departments.

Collective bargaining is challenging in the economic climate in which all cities are operating, … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Hermosa Beach, Letters to the Editor | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Wake up – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Donald Sellek

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Mike

The local papers for years have been full of public sector mandates, ultimatums, teacher, police, firefighter and meter maid demands for unsustainable salaries, retirement perks, benefits, and legacy costs that are driving cities across America into bankruptcy. Last night, Hermosa Beach was front and center on Fox News nationally for the unsustainable costs of “meter maids,” while unmentioned was the ongoing teachers’ demands in the same “me,” “I” and “mine” cauldron of selfishness. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, California, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Hermosa Beach, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, School Teachers Union Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Thank You to the 90 Percent of Voters who Voted Against El Segundo Measure P, the Firefighter Union’s Initiative

Posted on May 18, 2012 by Mike

by Michael D. Robbins Director, Public Safety Project May 18, 2012 Thank you to the 90 percent of El Segundo voters who voted against Measure P, the firefighter union’s initiative, and to those who campaigned against it. I campaigned against … Continue reading →

Posted in El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo News, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Measure P - Firefighters Union Initiative, Police Union Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Thank You – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Helen Armstrong

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Mike

Thank You

I am delighted that Carl Jacobson has been reelected to serve our community and has been selected by four of our five city council members to be our mayor. Only Marie Fellhauer voted “No.”

Carl has selflessly served our community with integrity and distinction for many years, giving much time out of his life for altruistic reasons. He has the experience and motivation, and now enough support on the council with Suzanne Fuentes and David Atkinson, to help get our city back on the right track.

I am also delighted that ninety percent of the voters rejected Measure P, and instead voted to keep our local fire department and paramedic ambulances.

Mike Robbins led an informative and persistent campaign against Measure P since mid-2010. It took much of his time and effort to educate and motivate our community on this important issue, and our city’s future will be better as a result of his efforts.

I am grateful that our community has good citizens who give so much of themselves and expect so little in return. I am also grateful for those in our community who cared and supported them and their efforts. … Continue reading →

Posted in El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, Firefighter Union Corruption, Letters to the Editor, Measure P - Firefighters Union Initiative | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Vents about Public Employee Unions – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Kip Haggerty

Posted on May 3, 2012 by Mike

Vents about Public Employee Unions

I would like to congratulate the citizens of El Segundo on their stinging electoral rebuke to the public employee unions. To vote Carl Jacobson back in with the most votes after the vicious attack perpetrated upon him and then for the Council to elect him mayor speaks volumes. The shellacking that Measure P took is indicative of the mood that many shared, that the lies the Fire Department pollsters told in their early push poll were irrelevant, only local control mattered.

I saw Marie Fellhauer’s first act was supporting Bill Fisher for Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. This reminded me of Don Brann’s support for Eric Busch because it was “his turn” to be Mayor. She’ll be a one termer too. While I appreciate that Marie and Don have given up their time to serve, the mindset a public employee brings to the Council is inconsistent with fiscal responsibility and their natural tendency is to represent public employee unions instead of the citizens.

I hope that the public employee unions have learned their lesson. You can’t shake down your neighbors for excessive pay and benefits in a down economy. The money simply isn’t there. I also hope they will listen to Dave Atkinson on pension reform ideas because the same sad fate may befall them as many private sector union members. When their companies went bankrupt, they got only a fraction of their pension … Continue reading →

Posted in El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Measure P - Firefighters Union Initiative, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Schools but not cities – Letter to the Beach Reporter by Edward Caprielian

Posted on March 22, 2012 by Mike

Lack of visibility and public input during city employee union contract negotiations

Schools but not cities

Question: Are Manhattan Beach residents afforded public hearings on city employee labor negotiations such as those provided between the Manhattan Beach School District and its teachers?

Answer: Absolutely not! The Educational Employment Relations Act requires hearings by school districts to “enable the public to become informed” and provide the public “the opportunity to express itself” and to “know the positions of their elected representatives” before negotiations.

The Meyers-Milias Brown Act covering local government labor relations requires no such public hearing, but neither is there a prohibition. The Manhattan Beach City Council, true to its historic repressive policy of not informing the public and respecting our intelligence, prohibits such efforts.

Question: Has the Manhattan Beach City Council (MBCC) barricade produced fiscal responsibility?

Answer: Absolutely not! Present contracts are replete with fiscally irresponsible provisions including diminished management authority; requiring salary increases but prohibiting decreases; allowing “stealth bonuses” for “extra duties” without required qualifications; and deficient disciplinary procedures including employees receiving pay while being investigated for misconduct with no provisions for deducting income earned from outside employment while on administrative leave.

Because elected officials and managers receive pay and benefits equal to or more than employees, they too benefit from these deficiencies including personnel policies resulting in inadequate measures of managerial performance and “investment vehicles” resulting in accrued vacation and sick leave paid out at current salary rather than when accrued. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Manhattan Beach, Manhattan Beach News, News, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Long memory – Letter to the Beach Reporter by Mary Olinick

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Mike

I laughed when I learned Jan Cruikshank criticized Michael Robbins’ “Candidate Ranking” letter. I will be voting for Robbins’ three top-tier candidates: Carl Jacobson, Dave Atkinson, and Dave Burns.

It’s not surprising Cruikshank supports Robbins’ bottom-tier candidates – Cindee Topar, Cindy Mortesen, and Scott Houston. Houston is allied with the firefighter and police unions. He took police union money and their endorsement in 2010. He read a script almost identical to the fire union representative’s script at the Feb. 15, 2011 City Council meeting, pressuring the city council to enact Measure P into law without letting the people vote on it. And Topar was campaign manager for a firefighter.

Cruikshank was the firefighter union’s candidate back in 1992. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo News, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off

Dangerous consequences – Letter to the Beach Reporter by Marianne Fong

Posted on March 15, 2012 by Mike

I witnessed the aftermath of a car accident in Gardena. A car was overturned, and a man sat in the street, missing his legs, surrounded by five Gardena city police cars positioned to prevent him from getting hit again. He moaned in pain and screamed for someone to help him, but nobody there could help.

There were no paramedics yet, and no ambulance, because Gardena uses the L.A. County Fire Department, just as El Segundo will if Measure P passes.

Measure P eliminates our city fire department and contracts with the L.A. county fire department for at least ten years. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo News, Letters to the Editor, Measure P - Firefighters Union Initiative | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off