IBEW LU 2376 Offers to give up days off to save members' jobs in Vallejo, CA

Monday May 10, 2004

City Council votes to cut its own pay

By CHRIS G. DENINA, Times-Herald staff writer
The Vallejo City Council's resolve to give up about $5,400 of its own compensation to show unions they're not immune from cuts, sparked some debate Tuesday.

The council voted 5 to 1 to give up about $778 each. Councilmember Pamela Pitts, who cast the dissenting vote, called the amount a "pittance." Councilmember Pete Rey was absent from the meeting.

"I'm not going to support it because I feel like it's political posturing..." Pitts said. "To put it out here separately as one item, I don't agree with it."

The city faces a projected $9.5 million deficit and anticipates laying off about a fifth of its permanent workforce before July, in addition to 60 temporary employees losing their jobs Friday.

Mayor Tony Intintoli Jr. said the council must show it too is willing to make sacrifices as the city negotiates with its employee unions to take a pay cut to help avoid layoffs.

"It may just be a gesture, but gestures are important," Intintoli said.

The police and fire unions said they've offered a deal that would save the city more than $1.9 million in payroll, while the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 2376 said its members will be asked today to approve taking unpaid days off to help save jobs.

Fred Barrett of Vallejo told the council it was a bad idea.

"It is this kind of short-sighted, quick-fix response that continues to plague City Hall," Barrett said. The cuts, which are for one year, may hurt the city's ability to attract candidates for public office, he said.

Council members each receive about $23,000 in pay, perks and benefits, while the mayor's total compensation is about $48,000. The issue of pay should be reconsidered when the city's finances improve, said Councilmember Gary Cloutier, who backed out of running for mayor last year after saying the job was too much of a sacrifice in pay.

"This is an issue that should be reopened and looked at again," Cloutier said.

Among other matters, the council approved:

n Considering hiring outside legal and financial consultants help prepare for the sale of the city-owned Six Flags Marine World theme park to Oklahoma City-based Six Flags Inc.

The council put a $100,000 limit on the consulting fees, after Councilmember Gerald Davis said the city should watch its spending.

The city needs expert help in negotiations, interim City Manager Otto Giuliani said.

"This is probably one of the most complicated, complex sales agreements I've ever seen," Giuliani said. "I want to make sure we have the best legal minds attached to this."

- Allocating about $1.7 million in federal grants. That's about $300,000 more than anticipated.

About $200,000 will go to Vallejo neighborhood Housing Services Inc., which provides services including providing first-time home loans to buyers and loaning homeowners money to fix up their house. About $98,000 will go to the city for running the grant program.

And $2,400 will go to the Florence Douglas Senior Center to fix its roof.

"It seems that it's leaky in every area of that roof," Executive Director Vicki Conrad told the council. "We cannot withstand another rainy season in the facility that we're in."