Joe Nelson, Staff Writer
Created: 05/28/2010 07:46:46 PM PDT
The San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday will consider a plan to lay off 85 employees and eliminate a total of 462 county positions in an effort to close an $89.4 million deficit in the county’s 2010-2011 budget.
Up to 410 additional employees, including sheriff’s deputies, could also be laid off if the county cannot negotiate new contracts with its general and safety employee unions.
General and safety employees are being asked to forgo pay raises again this year. Negotiations are still underway.
Public safety employees, including sheriff’s deputies, have been asked to cut their pay by 7 percent to generate about $16 million in savings. The union has offered about half that, said Bill Abernathie, president of the San Bernardino County Safety Employees Benefit Association.
“We came up with what we thought was a reasonable compromise, and that’s what we’re voting on right now,” said Abernathie.
The county’s proposed $3.8 billion spending plan, which includes $598.5 million in county-controlled funding, calls for all county departments to cut costs by up to 40 percent.
“I believe the proposed budget reflects the board’s desire to be fiscally responsible, even if that means making difficult decisions,” County Administrative Officer Greg Devereaux said in a news release.
Programs and positions in the District Attorney’s and Public Defender’s offices would be eliminated due to a reduction in state-funded
support.
District Attorney Michael A. Ramos said he will fight to save positions.
“We’re down to bone,” Ramos said. “This is a tough time for everybody.”
He said the fate of positions in his office rests primarily with the labor unions.
“If the (unions) don’t waive (pay raises), it’s going to create double the economic crisis in the county,” Ramos said.
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You mean the County may actually do the fiscally responsible thing before or after it extorts the money from employees via complicit union leadership?
How much do you guys on 5 get paid? And how many of you hold conservative values as your core beliefs? Make the cuts now, quit balancing general fund deficits with the surplus revenues from other programs. Stop assisting the City of San Bernardino in the transformation of their sows ear central city mall into a sows ear with rhinestones.
Pay your hard working employees what they are worth, and make the cuts where the budget says you must. Nobody says life is fair.
I believe they can/will only lay off from departments that are paid out of the general fun. So, the Sheriff, DA, Public Defender, Parks, Land Use, Facilities, etc. will have to take on that burden. Most HS departments are State and Federally funded so will not be part of the cut. I would feel safe at TAD; what with all the new staff they have brought on. Seriously, even if they did lay off, how much more work can they throw on the EWs and tell them to “make it work” and never make your region look bad, OR ELSE?
Don’t let them forgo your raises. Let them cut from those other departments who have always had their budgets protected.
People are laid off in private industry every day. It’s unfortunate but it’s time for the County to trim the fat. I would feel better if they would trim some of the middle management fat first but they need to start somewhere. If laying off 400- 800 people will allow you to pay the other 15000 a decent wage with appropriate COLA’s then that’s what you have to do.