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Flat Broke: Two cities lay off ALL School Teachers and Firefighers!

Is it time to outlaw government unions before there is no more government?"The problem with socialism is that eventually you run out of other people's money ."

- Margret Thatcher

As I have been reporting for over a year, there is simply no "give" in the bloated payrolls, pensions and entitlements in many liberal cities.

After decades of taxing the rich and businesses into leaving town, there is no one left to tax and thus there is no more money.

What is unclear is who gets cut first. It's against the law to breach payments to bondholders, so they'll probably get paid.

Next comes pensioners; most people believe that it is unconscionable to cut pension checks to someone who is too old to work. And of course, there is no provision in the Union Labor Contracts to cut pensions.

Since union agreements bar cuts in pensions and wages, there is only one "tool" left to city managers who are trying to balance their budget; fire people, fire them all!

Today the city of Providence Rhode Island notified all of their school teachers that they would be terminated at the end of the school year.

At the same time, the city of Allen Park Michigan notified their entire fire department that they would be terminated in 30 days.

Perhaps it's time to outlaw all unions for government workers before there is no more government! One thing is clear, politicians, particularly liberal ones, should never have been allowed to negotiate with organized labor/crime.

Dave

Providence plans to pink slip all teachers

01:00 AM EST on Wednesday, February 23, 2011

By Linda Borg

Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE — The school district plans to send out dismissal notices to every one of its 1,926 teachers, an unprecedented move that has union leaders up in arms.

In a letter sent to all teachers Tuesday, Supt. Tom Brady wrote that the Providence School Board on Thursday will vote on a resolution to dismiss every teacher, effective the last day of school.

In an e-mail sent to all teachers and School Department staff, Brady said, “We are forced to take this precautionary action by the March 1 deadline given the dire budget outline for the 2011-2012 school year in which we are projecting a near $40 million deficit for the district,” Brady wrote. “Since the full extent of the potential cuts to the school budget have yet to be determined, issuing a dismissal letter to all teachers was necessary to give the mayor, the School Board and the district maximum flexibility to consider every cost savings option, including reductions in staff.” State law requires that teachers be notified about potential changes to their employment status by March 1.

“To be clear about what this means,” Brady wrote, “this action gives the School Board the right to dismiss teachers as necessary, but not all teachers will actually be dismissed at the end of the school year.”

“This is beyond insane,” Providence Teachers Union President Steve Smith said Tuesday night. “Let’s create the most chaos and the highest level of anxiety in a district where teachers are already under unbelievable stress. Now I know how the United States State Department felt on Dec. 7 , 1941.” That was the day the Japanese government bombed Pearl Harbor.

Smith, who has forged a groundbreaking collaboration with Brady that has received national recognition, said he believes this move comes directly from Mayor Angel Taveras, not the School Department. In a conversation with Taveras earlier Tuesday, Smith said the mayor also hinted at school closings but didn’t elaborate.

Taveras, in a statement issued Tuesday night, said the uncertainty around the city’s finances, combined with the March 1 deadline, led to this decision. Because it is too early to be certain of all possible changes to the school budget, Taveras said, issuing dismissal notices to all teachers “provides maximum flexibility” going forward.

“As a Providence public school graduate, I understand how great teachers can change lives,” he wrote. “I am sensitive to the uncertainty and anxiety that many teachers felt when they received this notice. My administration will do all it can to support our committed, hardworking teachers during this difficult time.”

Providence is facing a daunting budget crisis. The city had a $57-million deficit last year and expects a higher figure for the year ending June 30. In addition, the city, under then-Mayor David N. Cicilline, nearly depleted its reserves to cover day-to-day expenses. Taveras is currently awaiting completion of a report by an independent panel, which he commissioned to get a better handle on the city’s financial situation.

Meanwhile, Smith said he was caught completely off-guard by the planned dismissals, adding that Brady didn’t inform him of the decision until 5:30 p.m. Tuesday although he had heard rumors over the weekend.

He said it makes no sense to send out dismissal notices to every teacher because the district has a legal obligation to educate all of its students, regardless of budget considerations. “You have so many students,” he said. “You need so many teachers. You have a student-teacher ratio of 26 to 1. Do the math.”

Last year, only about 100 teachers received layoff notices, but in years past, as many as 500 have.

Smith said the dismissals couldn’t come at a worse time. The union is getting close to resolving a lawsuit over seniority-based hiring. The teachers’ contract expires June 30. And both Smith and Brady have staked their careers on a first-ever partnership in which both sides have agreed to make deep reforms in four of the district’s lowest-performing schools.

“We’re at the table with our best ideas,” Smith said. “To take this approach is unconscionable.”

Source: The Providence Journal

Allen Park official says layoffs needed to plug $600K deficit

Santiago Esparza / The Detroit News

Allen Park— The city's finance director said today that Allen Park must lay off 25 to 30 employees by June to avoid a $600,000 deficit for the current fiscal year.

Tim McCurley said in an interview that the city sent layoff notices to everyone in the fire department to comply with a clause in the firefighters' union contract requiring a 30-day notice. He said some or all of the firefighters could lose their jobs, and that the police department faces layoffs too.

"It's a major disruption to our police and fire service than what our residents are used to," he said.

According to McCurley, city officials are discussing several options on how to provide fire protection but have not settled on a plan. He referred further questions in that area to City Administrator Eric C. Waidelich, who did not return phone calls this afternoon.

"It's not easy to lay people off," McCurley said. "No one wants to do that. It's never easy, but we are trying to work through it."

The finance director said the layoffs would only keep the city's books balanced for this year and have nothing to do with any funding cuts in Gov. Rick Snyder's proposed budget for fiscal 2012.

According to McCurley, the city faces a fiscal crunch because revenue in several areas has fallen short of projections. Collections from traffic tickets are $819,000 below what was budgeted, and ambulance billing collections are $200,000 under budget, he said.

McCurley said the city also had to refund $80,000 under order of the Michigan Tax Tribunal.

In other areas, spending has exceeded projections, including $130,000 in parks and recreation. McCurley said the city failed to budget for $150,000 for unused sick and vacation time for employees who have retired.

Overtime in the fire department is $150,000 over budget, even after firefighters agreed to limit overtime pay as part of concessions negotiated last year, McCurley said.

City Council members approved laying off the 25-person fire department Tuesday night.

Fire Chief Doug LaFond said he would be laid off as well.

"That is obviously not what we want," LaFond told The Detroit News this morning. "We want to continue to serve the residents."

Allen Park, like many other communities across the state, is dealing with decreasing property values and falling tax collections. Moreover, the city gave $1.2 million to a movie studio, Unity Studios, that later bolted for Detroit.

But LaFond questioned the need to eliminate his entire force to make up for shrinking revenue.

"The bottom line is there aren't any other cities in the state of Michigan that are eliminating fire departments because of it," LaFond said.

The fire chief said he did not believe the entire police department was being threatened with layoff, but said the police force is about double the size of his department and could see significant cuts.

Police Chief Dean Tamsen said this afternoon he hadn't received word of layoffs in his department, which has 45 officers. However, he said he "can't picture the city laying off firefighters and not police officers. That is wishful thinking."

The chief said he has met with his command staff to map out ways to provide police service if there are cuts.

Tamsen said he has watched as communities across Metro Detroit have made painful cuts to keep up with declining tax bases, shrinking state revenue sharing allotments and the auto industry downsizing.

"I have been doing this job for almost 30 years," Tamsen said. "One of the reasons I came in was job security. That is now gone. I would have never dreamed it would get to this."

Tamsen said many in the community blame the cuts on the failure of the studio deal, but he believes the city's money issues go beyond the money lent to the studio.

"We've never faced a situation like this," the police chief said. "It is horrible."

LaFond said the firefighters' union last fall gave $800,000 in concessions that included the overtime limits and eliminating pay raises for promotions.

"I guess that wasn't enough," he said.

The firefighters union filed a grievance against the city, alleging that a position hasn't been filled as required under the contract, which includes the concessions negotiated last year and expires in March. Union president Jeff O'Riley said his local is willing to consider more concessions, but not before the city fills the position.

"You don't do this to families," he said. "They show no class or respect for the people who have given up so much for the city."

LaFond said his department's ambulance service generates $600,000 annually. He said collections are down, but times are tough and his department shouldn't lose firefighters because of it.

"They have singled us out," he said. "Other departments were able to make cuts through attrition and buyouts."

News of the cuts spread quickly through the community.

Resident Rose Reyes said she is nervous about the layoffs because the city hasn't released details about how public safety would be handled. Reyes, 33, who has lived in the city for six years, said the moves seem like bargaining tactics, which she said isn't fair to the firefighters, officers or residents.

"They are trying to bust the unions all around the United States," Reyes said. "I think that is pretty crummy of them if that is what they are doing. They are taking away our sense of security."

Allen Park Mayor Gary Burtka didn't return calls or e-mails by late this afternoon.

Source: The Detroit News

Allen Park official says layoffs needed to plug $600K deficit

Santiago Esparza / The Detroit News

Allen Park— The city's finance director said today that Allen Park must lay off 25 to 30 employees by June to avoid a $600,000 deficit for the current fiscal year.