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In this week's edition of the online Herald-Advocate we read an article, written by Ms. Jennifer Johnson, titled 'Bach: Council should manage city employees'. If that title alone doesn't make you sit up and take notice, then the opening paragraphs of the story should --
"Some might call it micromanaging, but for Park Ridge Alderman Don Bach, giving the City Council the authority to reorganize city staff and terminate positions is a necessity in light of the current economic climate.
Accusing City Manager Jim Hock of not doing enough to cut expenses, Bach presented the council with a proposal Monday night that would allow aldermen to "mandate reorganization and staff reduction for specified positions in specified numbers in a specific period of time by a super majority vote." Since 1949, when the position was created, the city manager has had the authority to "consolidate, combine or reorganize positions or units" that fall under his jurisdiction. These positions include all department heads and any employees exclusive of police officers and firefighters."
Holy wow! Does anyone really feel that politicians should control the hiring and firing of public employees? We mean, anyone besides City of Chicago Mayor Shortshanks?
Thankfully, it appears the rest of the Park Ridge City Council didn't hop on 3rd ward Ald. Don Bachtard's patronage wagon.
The article quotes the 2nd ward's Lord of the Manor, Rich DiPietro as saying --
"This City Council has enough problems trying to figure out what it's doing and being consistent in what it's doing without trying to run the day-to-day operation of the city," said 2nd Ward Alderman Rich DiPietro."
PRUdos to Ald. DiPietro! The PRU Crew has noted the same problems and inconsistency!
Anyone interested in viewing the Council's discussion of this topic can do so by going to the 38:33 mark in video #3 and the beginning of video #4 which we posted here.
For a quicker view, we've been provided with a link to the specific video segment, below --
24 comments:
Bach is unbelievable. It takes some balls to accuse the city mgr. of not doing enough to cut the budget when Bach is one of the ones who increased charity contributions over the budget, wouldn't raise water rates to users to cover the cost increases, and is now going along with Wsol on a massive giveaway for home improvements for flooding controls and has gone along the whole time with these deficit budgets. This guy is unbelievable.
Bach has to be kidding or he is completely out of his friggin' mind.
What's he going to do when he "controls" hiring and firing and other maintenance of city staffers? Ride his bike around asking random "neighbors" in Park Ridge what they think about the job that some unknown obscure city staffer(s) is/are doing...
JHC!!! WTF!!! How is this even consdiered credible?
Kudos to DiPeitro for saying one of the few sane things that have come out of those council chambers in a long time... you Adlermorons can hardly manage your own affairs and you want to take on the day to day operations of the city?!?!
This shouldn't surprise anybody. This is the same guy who is responsible for wanting to take away decisions from boards and commissions and who wants to review all decisions made about trees by city staff.
This could be the boldest step Bach has made but it's right in line with the rest of his power grabs.
No surprise here. He's shown his colors all before.
What a weasel ASSWsol. I caught the clip and thanks for that. Staff picked the $7M water number? Uh, didn't ASSWsol and the rest of them look at that number and then vote to approve it when they approved the City budgit?
The next election is in April. Can't come soon enough for me.
April 2011.
April 2011? We have to try to survive these guys for more than another year and half? God help us.
it takes a village...
of idiots...
If alderman Bach thinks there are too many managers then he must also have an opinion of where those jobs can be eliminated.
Why doesn't he just say which managers should be eliminated? All this dancing around the issue is dumb.
very nice, 308...
It takes a village to step up and change the way things are if you don't like them. Don't just SAY you are going to do something, DO IT. Stop babbling and complaining.
Know someone who you want to be your alderman to replace one of these monkeys? Start chatting them up. When it's time to run, help them fundraise, staff their office, go DOOR TO DOOR, stand outside in the cold. If you don't, then you are just a whiner in a recliner with a remote, like all the rest.
And, before anyone says it, YES I know it's the "City" not the "Village."
I certainly agree with most of the comments about Bach and he is my alderman. But I am frustrated too about the lack of initiative by the city manager to reduce costs. I think I read on this blog that he had refused to submit a cost reduction plan to the Council. Correct me if I am wrong. They layed off 4 people (out of hundreds I suspect)because nobody would agree to any sort of give backs except the firemen who I think gave up a raise.
In the paper today we learn that they are cutting back services as a result. Ziggy admitted that he had not even considered part time people for snow removal.
In the rest of the world out there
people get layed off and the work still gets done. People have to learn to work harder or more efficiently. But not in government. Good enough for government but not good enough for anything else. That's what we are stuck with.
There are exceptions in the real world for awhile. The GM Toyota plant in Fremont CA which closed today because the 4700 workers thought they have a contracted right to make $60 per hour while on a permanent work slowdown. Not good enough for anything else either.
So Bach is Bach. He can be a waste of time but he isn't the problem.
anon 4:14:
Apparently my wprk experience in the private secotr is different than yours. In my experience, when there are staff reductions there are things that do not get done or get done but in a half-ass way and our clients eventually notice.
One could make the argument that if a significant portion of employees are let go and things still get done without a problem you had overstaffing issues to begin with.
he's not the SOLUTION, either...
Anon 4:26
My guess is that when those problems occurred you fixed them without adding back staff. I don't believe that there is any evidence that ever happens in Park Ridge government.
It's alot of fun to lampoon Ald. Bach and his moronic nature...and it's interesting to talk about all those lazy public employees...
...but what I find most disturbing about the H-A piece and Bach's idea for taking control from the City Manager for "re-organizing, consolidating, and/or dismissing city employees"...is the FACT that such a move would represent an astounding paradigm shift in our local form of government...a complete and total paradigm shift.
...and we aren't even being asked to vote on it...like we were with cutting the council, or would be should anyone choose to promote the idea of moving from ward representation to electing trustees at large...
Taking control from the City Mgr., under our City Mgr. form of government, and giving the city council authority for the hiring/firing and organization of city employees is/would be a STUNNING shift in our form of government.
I can't believe nobody has remarked upon this... Bach is maniacal!!! I pray to God the rest of the council sees fit to ignore him completely on this matter!!!
Anon 4:26:
Yes we fixed the problems as they arose, but more problems followed (we fixed those as well). In my line of work what happens over time is that clients will leave because of lack of service.
Of course when you are talking about public works department that is operating too lean, it is not as if we can go somewhere else, although I suppose we could put our homes on the market. From my perspective, I am not losing any sleep over the proposed cut in brush removal. But my general read on the reactions of most in this town is that a reduction in some services is not acceptable to them. Every winter I hear screaming when there is the slightest bit of snow on the ground.
The other issue that needs to be considered (I do not know the answer to this) is the existing contract. If they have some of the employees who were not layed off now do the brush pickup or other potentially cut services, would that not mean overtime? That would mean you would be giving back a chunk of the money you just saved.
Kudos to Bach for standing up and causing a stir. The soup needs to be stirred-the ingredients are getting bland.Time to make changes in this town. Bach wants to hold people accountable, and he should-we are paying for all the city staff members, and for the most part, they do a great job, however some of them are on a power trip and have personal agendas that they choose to take out on various residents, because they can. They are there to serve us."You can't fight city hall," they say. One day, I believe someone will appear and they will fight city hall, and win. Besides,if city hall is set up in a way that it needs to be fought, what's the point of the meetings, the comments-we are spinning our wheels people. Bach is trying to make people wake up-wake up!!!! Breathe in, and allow the change-the future is awaiting. Our children deserve to live in a town that knows how to run itself-otherwise, they will choose to run from it. Words of advice, it is easy to hide behind a chair and type a comment, I am doing it, but it takes balls to stand in front of a crowd that will throw stones at you and speak your mind. Bravo Bach!!!!!!
BACH IS COOL
FRIMARK ROCKS
Perhaps we need to take up a pool to pay for an MRI for Bach. The only explanation that I can find for his outrageous behaviour is a rapidly growing brain tumor.
Anon at 11:17, isn't the appropriate thing for Bach to do is to hold Hock accountable for his job performance, or lack thereof as the case may be. This is a little to quick to the gun. Hold Hock accountable rather than taking it away from Hock.
Shades of the old Homeowners Party! Whenever a taxpayer asks me why they ask repeatedly for common-sense X and never get it, I tell them, "If you don't like what's happening, it's because all it takes is 51 percent of your so-called representatives to say, 'They (staff) are the professionals; let them make the decisions and we'll just back them up.' Every inept staff and board in the world warns against "micromanaging" -- which is what anything is called that questions how things are being done -- in this case, with your money. You are not a supplicant or a "resident" -- you are an owner, Mr. Taxpayer! Delegation is the ideal, but doing nothing while self-serving decisions are made by those you pay is just not responsible. Firing managers just results in costly replacement with others who are also not held accountable by the elected officials. It's awfully hard to justify not making specific, concrete suggestions from the real world when we see things being handled for the comfort and convenience of staff at the expense of those who pay them. Firing people is a lot of drama; how about just making suggestions and having those suggestions taken under serious consideration? We are not farmers coming hat in hand to the schoolmarm who has a bit of eddication -- we have taxpayers who are operating large, successful groups of personnel, administrative and otherwise,to meet customers' expectations -- what's so wrong with taking their advice when the alternative is our staff saying, "nothing can be done, just pay more for less?" Maybe if there were more cross-training and other proactive solutions as are used in the real world, we could keep EVERYBODY and use them to get all of the work done! Taxpayers would object much less to the abstract "we have a deficit" if the concrete, day-to-day solutions they pay for were being effectuated. I am no right-wing anti-government whack job; I just think we should get our money's worth. I am frankly surprised at PRU's position on this one.
Anon@1:40 --
You are suprised that the PRU Crew's position on this would be we don't feel politicians should take control of hiring and firing away from the City Mgr.? You're suprised that we feel giving control of hiring and firing of personnel, beyond the City Mgr., to politicians is a bad idea?
Are you not paying attention or are you stupid?
Hey Nessie
Can't be a BRAIN tumor.
Colorectal maybe, but definately not a BRAIN tumor.
Hey, Let's bring back the dirty seven too.
Let Bach rule.......sounds more like the 5th floor on LaSalle street.
Hey.....you wannna job,,,,,,call your precinct capt!!!
What does John Kass say....its gettin more like the jumbalones
are taking over.....
Or the fat lady is singing here...
get off my commission!!
B.O.H.I.C.A.
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