January 12, 2012

Dear Omaha Firefighters,

I want to write to you personally to share a few very important thoughts about the condition and the position your union finds itself in today.

As you know, I have been very outspoken about what I believe has been major wrongdoing within both the firefighters union and the fire department. It appears that the wrongs were committed by a very small group of leaders who have found their way into positions of power and leadership.  Much of the wrongdoing, I believe, has been targeted toward the faithful, honest and hardworking firefighters who have avoided becoming close with these leaders and therefore have found themselves “black balled” and “passed over” in favor of others who were willing to turn a blind eye to the harmful agenda that has damaged both the firefighters and the city.

Our organization decided to commission an investigation into all the things we were hearing, and in that effort discovered material you have seen us produce over the past few years. Now that much of this has come to light, I have been told union leaders and their attorney have decided to go on a “witch hunt” attacking those they allege spoke either to me or our investigators. This witch hunt has led them into great error and the harming of innocent individual firefighters.

An example of this is the attack against John Strawn. I met John through the Republican Party and had the opportunity to speak with him personally. I spoke with John about the investigation that took place during the Daub administration regarding misuse of union hours and failure to comply with the labor agreement. The issues during the Daub administration involved proper classification and documentation of union activity, similar to the issues we uncovered that the State Auditor confirmed.

John simply verified for me that both he and Mike McDonnell were investigated during the Daub administration for not properly accounting for their union hours, and that they were almost fired as a result. John did not have specific knowledge of Steve LeClair’s activities, because he was retired and not around when LeClair became president. We were trying to determine how widespread the misuse of union hours had been during past years, and John confirmed there indeed had been a problem during the Daub years and that Mr. McDonnell had been instructed to stop ignoring proper accounting procedures and comply with the labor agreement.

In the lawsuit filed against me, I disclosed that I had been informed Mike McDonnell was assigned to the Bureau when he became fire union president, but that some had said he did not show up for work at the Bureau and that this practice continued when Steve LeClair became fire union president. I also stated that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, this information was confirmed by John Strawn and three other individuals. After conferring with John Strawn, I now believe, although John might have been present when the subject of Steve LeClair had been discussed, John Strawn did not provide information specifically about LeClair, because he was not around while LeClair was president.

Even if John Strawn had provided the information about Steve LeClair being at the union hall on a daily basis, it would be silly to seek retribution from him, because the information was absolutely true and well-known to many. Steve LeClair and his superiors readily admitted during the lawsuit that LeClair worked at the union hall on a daily basis and not the Bureau, confirming exactly what I had been told. The issue of LeClair not showing up at the Bureau was not a focus of ours, considering all of the other things we were uncovering, until I read in the Auditor’s letter that he reported only six hours of union leave. I thought he was caught red-handed, because it was well-known that he was at the union hall on a daily basis.

So, today union officers and their attorney are wrongfully attacking an innocent person, claiming Mr. Strawn maligned LeClair, when he did not. This is a perfect demonstration of their reckless ambushing of an innocent firefighter without any proof. It is similar to the ambush of four highly regarded firefighters in a document produced a few months ago attacking the “four horsemen;” four individuals we have never interviewed and none of whom I would know if I saw them. The behavior of your union officers and legal counsel is promoting firefighter-on-firefighter assault, in my opinion.

Lastly, in order to end the lawsuit with Steve LeClair, Mr. Corrigan clearly communicated to our legal counsel that they were willing to settle the matter without an apology or retraction. They made a settlement demand for the amount of legal fees expended by Mr. LeClair to that point: $18,000. Because that amount was less than the cost of a trial and because an apology was no longer required, our insurance company compelled us to settle the case. We made it clear we would not agree to pay for other parties to sue us by paying their entire legal bill.   After negotiation, our insurance company agreed to pay $9,000—half the cost of the legal fees.

Therefore, Steve LeClair should have an outstanding balance of $9,000 on his legal bill.  If your union is asked to pay his attorney’s fees, it should not be for anything more than $9,000.  LeClair should not make money personally off of a personal lawsuit and expect Local 385 to pay his entire legal bill ($18,000) so he can get free money.  It would be wise for your members to watch this activity carefully to see if your union was stuck with the entire bill.  Hopefully, this did not occur.

In my opinion, and in the opinion of many leaders within this community, your leadership team has seriously damaged your public reputation and set your union on a course of economic destruction by negotiating unsustainable labor agreements and by personally attacking anyone who questions what has occurred,  whether firefighter or private citizen. The citizens of Omaha will not support a union that continues to operate in the manner your union leaders have operated in the past 10 years.

It is critical that your membership replace these individuals with leaders of high moral character and integrity.  Otherwise, things will only get worse for your members because the public will no longer stand for what has been happening in our city. Business and community leaders will sooner or later demand massive restructuring  of the city’s relationship with your union and the fire department.

Now  is the time  for you to have the courage to stand up for those who demonstrate disciplined behavior, honesty, integrity, adherence to the rules, reward for true performance, awarding of promotions according to true accomplishment rather than favoritism, and mutual respect for both taxpayers and city leaders. Now is the time to  set your union on a course of long-term sustainability and prosperity, in part by retaining legal counsel who won’t drag your members into court, anytime, anywhere, knowing they can, because you will just cough up the money to  pay the legal bill.

The citizens of Omaha really do want to hold you in the highest of esteem, and I am confident that community respect will return to your members if you show the resolve needed to replace these leaders with new leaders who know how to build relationships and form alliances–not only with politicians, but with the greater business and taxpaying community.

I and the members of my board are willing to meet with any group of firefighters who would like to learn more about our motives and efforts regarding your labor organization and the city of Omaha. We truly believe the bickering and fighting has got to come to an end. It is time for men and women of character within your union to rise up and begin healing the wounds created by this reckless group of individuals who I believe have used you and your union to advance themselves at the cost of the entire union and at the expense of the City of Omaha.

A new era of leadership is needed and now is the time for your members to set a new course for Local 385 and  we would welcome any dialogue that you felt would be fruitful for all concerned.

Sincerely,

David Nabity

Chairman and President

Omaha Alliance for the Private Sector

OmahaAlliance.com readers:  Notice that the early retirement “epidemic” plagues unwary cities who do not pay attention to the well-constructed labor trap of agreeing to these early retirements for police and fire personnel.  Unfortunately, many cities, like Omaha under recent regimes, fell for these “sweetheart deals” during negotiations.  The net result of these early retirements is the cost of astronomic pensions COUPLED with ineffective departments depleted of experienced rank and file AND leadership.  This double whammy is cripling many cities’ budgets as well as their overall security.  Who is going to right this course? See below.

Pittsburgh Police are Facing Void of Seasoned Leaders

By Margaret Harding

Former Pittsburgh police Sgt. Leo O’Neill is on the leading edge of what may  be a wave of veteran cops — as well as some newcomers — leaving the city in  large part for a brighter financial future.

O’Neill, who departed at age 47 in 2010 for the Allegheny County Sheriff’s  Office after 22 years with the city, makes about $77,000 a year as a lieutenant,  is accruing pension benefits with the county and plans to start cashing city  pension checks when he turns 50 next year.

“When the opportunity presented itself, I couldn’t pass it up,” O’Neill said.  “Once you hit your time on the job (and become fully vested in the pension),  there’s not many incentives to stick around after that.”

With at least half of the city force becoming eligible to retire by 2013, and  younger officers leaving, there’s concern among the police union and top brass  about what the departures could do to the department in the next few years.

“Essentially, you’re going to have this mass retirement, and you’re not going  to have enough veterans to replace them,” said Dan O’Hara, president of the  Fraternal Order of Police Fort Pitt Lodge No. 1. “If you continue to lose the  newer people, they never become the seasoned veterans. It’s going to be a young,  inexperienced department if it continues on this path.”

In part, because of a surge in hiring between 1993 and 1995, about 500  officers will be eligible to leave with fully vested pensions by 2015, O’Hara  said. The city had 877 police officers at the end of the year, and Pittsburgh  police estimated about 400 are eligible to retire this year.

“These are our best people,” O’Hara said. “They’re seasoned veterans, and  they’re leaving, and what it comes down to is there is no benefit to stay once  they can vest their pension.”

In 2008, just four city officers left for other employment, according to a  city termination report. In 2009, the number was eight. Since 2010, 22 officers  have departed for other jobs, including Steve Mitrisin, a military veteran who  left after about three years of work and joined Collier police, where first-year  officers start at a salary $14,000 a year higher than Pittsburgh officers.

“Everybody wants to make good money and have a good retirement coming,”  Mitrisin said. “That was my biggest reason — looking for a better life for my  family and myself.”

The issue of officers leaving after 20 years of service is something of an  epidemic for larger American cities, said Maki Haberfeld, chairwoman of The  Department of Law, Police Science and Criminal Justice Administration at John  Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York.

“Truly, at the 20th year, this is when they should be shifted to leadership  and management positions,” Haberfeld said. “And instead they leave — and  various supervisor positions are open to people with less experience. … If you  don’t have experienced leadership, it can cause a host of problems — discipline,  integrity, effective deployment — all things that police officers build in their  experience over the years.”

In Omaha, a change in pension benefits led to a “mass exodus” of officers  between 2008 and 2010, said Samuel Walker, a professor emeritus at the  University of Nebraska at Omaha who studies police issues. The result has been a  department void of experienced leaders, he said.

“There is a pattern of officer misconduct, and that’s, in part, a result of  lack of experienced senior leadership,” Walker said. “It can very much erode the  quality of policing.”

O’Neill, whose father and brother were city police officers, said he was  happy with his time on the force. He worked in narcotics for nearly 20 years and  left in 2010 as a sergeant in Zone 6 when he had the chance to become a  lieutenant in the sheriff’s office.

“There never seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel with the city,”  O’Neill said. “That always seems like the sentiment.”

From his post in the courthouse, he sees many of his former colleagues when  they come to court.

“A lot of guys in my time frame are all taking tests and trying to get out,”  O’Neill said. “There’s a ton of people looking.”

Pittsburgh police will increase recruitment and “strategically plan to lessen  the impact on the police force of people who are retiring,” Chief Nate Harper  said in a statement released by spokeswoman Diane Richard.

“There will always be a concern as we seek to train and maintain the best  officers,” the statement said. “However, we cannot stop a member of the bureau  from making personal choices that may dictate a better living situation for that  officer and his/her families.”

Pittsburgh police officers make $40,896 in their first year, according to  2012 figures. Fourth-year officers get $58,419.

First-year sheriff’s deputies make $30,582 and top out at $69,670 after five  years. Lieutenants get about $77,000. Sheriff William P. Mullen said about 400  people took the test to become sheriff’s deputies in December, and he estimated  about 75 were Pittsburgh police officers.

Eighty people have applied for positions with Ross police, which held a test  for prospective officers on Saturday. Nine of the 14 officers Ross police have  hired since 2008 have Pittsburgh police experience, Ross Detective Brian  Kohlhepp said. Ross officers start at $53,297 and top out at $76,139 after five  years.

Eight of the 24 people whom Allegheny County police hired since 2008 were  former Pittsburgh police officers, Superintendent Charles Moffatt said. The  county does not recruit city officers; the job interest is there, Moffatt said.  Starting salary for a county officer is about $46,000, but officers reach the  top pay level of $69,975 after just 18 months of service.

“They’re well-trained,” Moffatt said of city officers. “They have actual  street experience, and they can more or less hit the ground running after a  short field training experience with us.”

Collier Township pays first-year officers about $54,900. They reach the top  pay of $73,236 after five years on patrol. Mitrisin, who worked out of the Zone  2 station in the Hill District for about three years, said he tested with  Cranberry, Ross and Collier police before taking the job in Collier.

“A lot of guys will tell you the city is the best place to work,” Mitrisin  said. “They love the action. It just depends on the person. I got enough of it  in Iraq. I didn’t hate it, but when you sit back and say you can make a lot more  money in the suburbs and not deal with what you’re dealing with there, why  not?”

Mayor wants fingerprint time clocks at Cleveland firehouses

Move follows internal city audit that found some city firefighters collected pay for hours they didn’t work

LECLAIR vs. NABITY
and OMAHAALLIANCE.COM SETTLE LAWSUIT

December 2, 2011

By now, news outlets have released information about the settlement reached in the above-captioned lawsuit.  Below are various statements either entered into by the parties or released from party representatives.  As usual, opponents of Dave Nabity and the OmahaAlliance.com accuse private citizens, like Dave Nabity and our organization, of having an “agenda” and being anti-union.  WE DO HAVE AN AGENDA – it is to seek reform of our local government and weed out waste, inefficiency, and corruption.

That any public sector union or its supporters can complain or sue or malign that purpose IS THE WHOLE POINT and the reason we seek reform.  It is undemocratic to silence objectors, especially those who speak out against any misuse or abuse of power.  The Alliance stands for accountability, responsibility, transparency, and the proper use of authority in local government.  Please read the following and make up your own mind.  We include the deposition of the Fire Chief for the public’s edification.  Once you have read it, decide for yourself if his description of how your tax dollars are accounted for in the Fire Department is what you would expect to satisfy accurate payroll records.

Release from Dave Nabity:

Memo to Omaha Alliance Members Regarding Settlement of Defamation Lawsuit

(Omaha, NE) As many of you may know, last year the President of the Firefighters Union filed a lawsuit against me and the Omaha Alliance for the Private Sector (OAPS) after I spoke out against the practices that were exposed when State Auditor Mike Foley investigated the fire department.  The main issue regarded the misuse of “detached duty” service and the concerns that a select group of firefighters were not following the labor contract and not properly keeping track of their union hours.  On November 29^th, 2011, both parties came to an agreement to settle the lawsuit and not proceed to trial.  OAPS agreed to do so for he following reasons:

1. The OAPS board felt that even if we exposed all of the misdeeds that we believe are happening within the OFD, the Mayor has already shown that he is unwilling to fire anyone who is violating the labor contract or mismanaging the epartment.  So, the time, energy, effort and cost would gain virtually nothing.
2. Our efforts and money would be better spent on working towards influencing the City Council to make sure the labor contract that is currently being negotiated is more comparable with what other cities have offered their firefighters.
3. We can also work to empower the City Council to demand strict compliance to the labor agreement, so that nobody, including the Chief, OFD employees, or union officers, can take liberties that needlessly cost the taxpayers.
4. On an individual note, I and many of my peers, believe that the best course of action is to spend our time and financial resources on finding “reform- minded” candidates to run for office in 2013 to replace those who have been willing to upport these horribly expensive labor contracts and department heads who run “fast and furious” with taxpayer resources.

Much of the decision to “settle” the lawsuit was driven by our insurance company.  The law explicitly allows liability insurers to settle claims or lawsuits as the insurer “deems expedient.”  Thus, if the insurer can pay less to settle a claim than it would cost in attorney fees to defend the case, the insurer can settle the lawsuit.  Under no circumstance was I willing to step back from my initial statement and assessment of the situation.  Today, I continue to believe that the taxpayers were being taken advantage of by the officers of the fire department and the union.  When LeClair’s counsel indicated a willingness to settle the lawsuit without a retraction on my part, I instructed my attorney to proceed with settlement negotiations.  We had the option of terminating our insurance coverage and proceeding to trial at our own expense, but it seemed foolish to spend between $25,000 and $50,000 on a trial and possible appeal when the facts of the case were not in dispute.  The depositions of both LeClair and McDonnell clearly revealed the games that we believe they were playing to get around the labor contract.  Just as I had been told, LeClair worked at the Union Hall on a daily basis and worked almost exclusively on union matters.  Through an absurd reading of the labor contract, McDonnell did not require LeClair to account for activities that I believe any reasonable person would understand to be union activities.  No trial was needed.

On the one hand, I was looking forward to the trial because we had a great group of witnesses that I am confident would have told the truth and exposed (in my opinion) how a few individuals have so taken advantage of the city that taxpayers have lost in excess of $10,000,000 over the last three years.  On the other hand, even if we prove all of this, what changes?  The mayor had his opportunity to show he was going to hold people accountable after the Auditor’s Report, and he didn’t.  Therefore, the best strategy is to focus our time, effort and money on the future to make sure that Omaha is finally rid of individuals who take advantage of the city, waste significant amounts of money and cover for each other when a light begins to shine on their
activities.

We will be posting on our website the final documents from the suit.  You will see, I made no apology and I strongly believe hat I stated was accurate.  We will also be posting the actual depositions from both union President Steve Le Clair and Chief Mike McDonnell.  You will be shocked at the way they have answered the questions and amazed at how little they can recall in one area and how much they remember of another.  These depositions clearly show to me (in my opinion) that they took huge liberties with the labor contacts that no mayor or city council should allow and there should be significant consequences for the Chief for allowing this game to be played.  The department has run over budget in the past by $5,000,000 a year and they have done very foolish things that have significantly cost the taxpayers.

It is time to move on from this battle and look toward the most important one, the 2013 elections.

Feel free to contact me if you have any questions on these matters and thanks so much for being a part of our organization and roviding us support as we have worked to make Omaha a better managed city.

Sincerely,

David Nabity

Release from Attorney for Dave Nabity and OmahaAlliance.com:

Yesterday, David Nabity and Omaha Alliance for the Private Sector, Inc. settled their lawsuit with Steve LeClair.  Attached are the relevant documents.

David Nabity did not apologize for the statements he made on KFAB and he did not retract them. There has been no admission of liability or damages, whatsoever.  Neither David Nabity nor Omaha Alliance will pay a single dime to Steve LeClair.
Omaha Alliance’s liability insurer, Great American Insurance Company, made a business decision that it was in the insurance company’s best interest to pay the minimal sum of $9,000.00 as opposed to paying legal fees for a weeklong trial.  Right before trial, Steve LeClair was willing to settle his lawsuit for a fraction of what he had paid in attorney’s fees over the last year but he no longer demanded an apology or retraction or public vindication.  Up to that point, the insurance company could not compel
Nabity or Omaha Alliance to apologize or retract the statement and would have paid for trial.  Until Nebraska enacts some type of loser-pay lawsuit reform, plaintiffs’ attorneys can continue to collect from insurance companies without having to set foot in court and individuals will continue to have money paid on their behalf without having an opportunity to contest liability.

Regards,

Joshua W. Weir
Dornan, Lustgarten & Troia, PC, LLO.

1403 Farnam Street, Suite 232
Omaha, NE 68102

Ph: (402) 884-7044
Fax: (402) 884-7045

Other statements, releases, and depositions on the matter:

Nabity Joint stipulation for dismissal with prejudice (2).pdf

Release and Settlement Agreement.pdf

Jointstatement.pdf

Final McDonnell Deposition.pdf

Affidavit of McDonnell

LeClairDeposition.pdf

Be Careful What You Ask For

By Tristan Bonn

Maybe this happens to you:  in the morning, I pick up the paper to read and on one side of the page some state or local agency is asking for money – to improve security, or hire more workers, or build a new building or what have you.  On the opposite column, that same agency has just given away some enormous amount of money to its employees in benefits I have never even heard of, let alone ever received myself.  Okay, maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but not by much!  I know this is beginning to sound like a broken record, but just look at the facts or at the very least, look at what the paper is reporting.  Here are three more examples of gross waste and mismanagement.

The Millard School District received and is still receiving quite a bit of negative feedback and consternation over a
requested $140.8 million bond they say they need to improve security and put astro-turf on their football fields, among other items.  Ballots have gone out and the vote is scheduled in the next days.  In Sunday’s Omaha World-Herald, we learned that Millard has or will pay out $24 million in bonuses to teachers who retired over the past 4 years.  One teacher will retire at 55 to a nice pension and a quarter a million dollar bonus!! The District justifies this expense as needed to retain good teachers. “School Buyouts Become Bonuses” http://www.omaha.com/article/20111106/NEWS01/711069911

I don’t get it – I thought districts and teachers’ unions told us it is not their fault schools are failing – it is the
parents’ fault.  So, why do we need to retain teachers by paying them a bonus? And, isn’t it their job to successfully teach kids – I mean isn’t that what their regular pay is for?  How about using the retirement bonuses for school security and astro-turf and give us taxpayers a break?

And, what about the Learning Community?  Why is there a tax levy anyway?  If you add the amount of retirement
“bonus” pay given out by 8 of the Learning Community’s districts, the total is $65.5 million in retirement bonuses! Then, you throw in superintendent pay – starting with John Mackiel’s $400,000 (can’t wait to see his “bonus”) – and that’s another $2.5 or so and that’s ALMOST 70 MILLION DOLLARS for retirement bonuses for schoolteachers in Omaha, Nebraska – touted as an inexpensive place to live.  Wow.  Maybe we should have an “Occupy the Learning Community” protest and sit in. “Retirement Buyouts” http://www.omaha.com/article/20111106/NEWS01/711069887

But, the school districts are not alone.  The beleaguered Department of Health and Human Services is another reliable actor in the continuing bilking of taxpayers in this state.  Just as we are still reeling from the new heinous patient abuse charges that date back to 1974!!, we learn that HHS did not protect itself (meaning taxpayers) in the event it could not perform under the terms of a contract with the private provider Mosaic.  While removing patients from Beatrice is long overdue, HHS did not vet its client list to see if there were enough patients to fill the contract beds it bargained for. As a result, HHS is gushing even more taxpayer money – $1.3M since April 2010 for empty beds, not to mention the $25M per year lost while Medicaid payments were withheld pending non-compliance. As for the empty beds, the HHS director can only offer that they will “fill eventually.” “State Pays as Beds Stay Empty’” http://www.omaha.com/article/20111030/NEWS01/710309961

And we cannot overlook the Omaha Police Department, who would like a $50M new police headquarters.  I can’t blame them for asking for a new building – they need one – the one they are in is horrible and asbestos filled.  They also need a real training budget, a new fleet of vehicles, another hundred officers and some serious technology upgrades, as well.  But, they cannot get any of it.  Why not?  No money. “4 Options, No Funds for HQ” http://www.omaha.com/article/20111107/NEWS01/711079889

But, before you feel too sorry for the police department, remember this is the same department, through their union, that negotiated and took retirements at 46 years of age, spiked their overtime, vacation pay, and got, in some cases over a $100,000 in “unused sick pay” – was that another retirement bonus? So, OPD got the money they asked for, they just put it in their own pockets instead of into the department.

The saddest thing about all of this is, not the poor employees, not the dilapidation of buildings, not the enormous injustice to taxpayers, but the people who were supposed to be served by those dollars:  the disabled at Beatrice, the kids in our schools, the victims of crimes.  So, the next time you go asking for more money, remember who it is really for.

While you are at it – check out this editorial by Ross Douthart, “Political Fights Weaken Middle Class,” Omaha World Herald, 11/9/2011: http://www.omaha.com/article/20111109/NEWS0802/711099954/-1#ross-douthat-political-fights-weaken-middle-class

The Time for Change Is Now

By Tristan Bonn

Even if you are not a “watchdog,” in fact, if you are just “watching,” the recent local headlines about state and local governmental agencies is, well, just appalling.  Glance at most any news report in the past six weeks or so and you would discover the following:

-  After years of lost federal funding and a federal consent decree –  the Beatrice State Developmental Center is investigating new allegations of patient abuse, “Bruises Spur Beatrice Center Probe” OWH 9/9/11; and “Beatrice Center Staffers Accused of Abuse,” wherein, Jodi Fenner, director of the Division of Developmental Disabilities for HHS “described the alleged abuse as systematic and borderline sadistic,” OWH 10/6/11;

-  HHS may have to find yet another new director to usher it through a failing privatization effort that was attempted to fix a broken state run system,  ”Child-Welfare Benchmarks Sought,” wherein, Carol Stitt, director of the Nebraska Foster Care Review Board, “said the auditor’s report was another illustration of the ‘dysfunction’ in the [HHS] reform effort,” OWH 9/11/11;

- OPS, the largest school district in the state, received the worst test scores in 18 years, “Put Academics Above Board at OPS” OWH Editorial 9/25/11; and its controversial and highly-paid superintendent is retiring, “National Search for Mackiel Replacement” OWH 8/17/11; a freshman school board member asked to see an OPS organizational chart and was, well, gleefully refused by the school board president, “OPS Rift: Dispute Over Control” OWH 9/18/11;

-  The public learned that Firehouse 56 was described as a “party house” during a 2003 investigation where 4 firefighters confessed to misconduct, which was never disclosed to the public, “Firehouse Called Party House” OWH 9/10/11;

-  The Learning Community’s shared levies have been ruled unlawful, “Learning Community Seeks Stay” OWH 9/27/11; parents are incensed about a “truancy” program, which has morphed into an invasive absenteeism check, “Parents Chafe at Truancy Oversight” OWH 10/2/11;

-   OPD faces excessive force claims and questions about its lack of training and supervision, “UNO Expert: Officer Should be Fired” OWH 8/31/11;

-  The City, forever financially strapped, paid out well over a half million dollars “unused sick pay” to five high ranking police and fire officers per another excessive union contract term that has taxpayers fuming, “Review City Pay Perks” OWH 9/25/11.

Sadly, this is a mere fraction of the bad news just in the past FEW WEEKS! If we can agree with the many experts cited in these accounts that these systems are broken, and I think most people would, then can’t we move quickly to find real solutions?  I think it is fair to say that the people working in these systems have fundamentally failed to achieve their objectives.  Either, we have a completely incompetent workforce, and most would agree we do not, OR we have a serious structural problem.

What we hear from most of these agencies is that they do not have enough money to do their job.  But, the truth is – there is NO MORE money – taxpayers in this state are soaked.  They pay so much in taxes and they get so little in services.  While nearly every one of these agencies is operated by a union workforce, they almost never have a solution to help fix their troubled departments.  Yet, every new contract negotiation spirals up the union demanded employee costs to run these failing systems!  With 60 – 90% of general fund monies going to personnel costs alone, there is no money to actually operate these systems – forget about reforming them.   In fact, increasingly, taxpayers are eyeing the pay, pensions, and benefits of public sector employees – many of which far exceed their own – and are furious at government workers’ constant demands.

To add insult to injury, these workers are exempted out of the federal pension plan: Social Security.  Their retirements are guaranteed unwittingly by taxpayers.  So, just when Social Security is about to go bankrupt and all of us will be without or with much less, as taxpayers – we are STILL on the hook for public sector pensions.  How can that  be?  “Well, we have a contract,” public sector workers  say.    But, what about the very first contract – the mother of all contracts – the promise of fair-dealing between a government and its citizens.  Why doesn’t that agreement trump all other agreements?

Still, most union leaders, and many members, just don’t seem to think that these failures or problems are their problem. Public sector unions, despite all the warnings opposing their creation, even from FDR himself, figure they won the fight to unionize long ago.  They don’t have to worry about where the money comes from.  Not enough? Too bad.  And, THAT IS JUST THE WAY IT IS.  Unions have painstakingly created a byzantine box, which no taxpayer can now escape.  For crying out loud, the Omaha Fire Department is arguing that legislative oversight of the contract bargaining process, in short, DEMOCRACY, is “bad faith,” “Fire Union Sues City” KETV 9/11/11.  Union contracts trump the Constitution?  This is just plain nonsense.

So, while it is not union-bashing per se that most people espouse, it is union structures, contracts, and actions in fact that have so many taxpayers so enraged.  Look, unions could make many, many concessions that would help cities and taxpayers make it through these tough times, and perhaps allow unions to survive, but they just won’t.  The “concessions” they offer are so minute in the grand scheme of things that it is impossible to believe they want to work anything out with taxpayers – their only source of revenue.  So, what choices are taxpayers left?  Well . . . here are some suggestions:

-  Start a petition to put an end to collective bargaining on the state ballot. This would cost $1 -2 million and would be opposed by NSEA and all other unions, a scenario like Wisconsin;

- End defined benefits and change to defined contributions. Well, Omaha should have done that back in 1984, when everyone else did, because we don’t have the money now to pay off the current obligation;

- Try the “new” CIR and bargain “incrementally.” Again, this would take YEARS to realize any significant changes;

- Have the City of Omaha file for bankruptcy and modify or discharge union contracts and pensions.  Expensive,
complicated, and lots of unintended consequences;

- Get rid of the CIR altogether and force Omaha to deal with its unions, after all, Omaha is the problem, not the rest of the state.  This would allow the City to make a last best offer and bargaining would halt.  If anyone – public or union – didn’t like it, then change would occur at the ballot box, not the CIR.

The only possible choice worth pursuing, in my estimation, is the last one – abandon the CIR.  It doesn’t work and it cannot be fixed (like the Beatrice Center and OPS, it is simply time to admit defeat and rid this community and state of failing systems). In this scenario, unions retain their right to bargain, but a jurisdiction, like Omaha, is not forced to compete with out of state jurisdictions that don’t reflect the standards of this community.  Also, this approach will force more local control and more participation in elections, rather than let a tribunal decide what our elected officials should.  Citizens need to actively and relentlessly contact their state legislators to make this happen.  We must act now or be doomed to this slow economic death at the hands of out-of-control public sector unions.  Many states have made these kinds of dramatic changes already.  While Wisconsin has been the most contentious, Oklahoma and Tennessee have legislatively prohibited collective bargaining for public sector unions, Indiana has by executive order and Ohio will vote by ballot soon, “Labor Unions Adjust to New Reality Under Obama” OWH 9/4/11.

Speaking of other communities, Omaha, and every other community, is in competition for jobs, new people, and new businesses.  While Omaha’s steady and surefooted economy has helped this community weather this recession better than many other communities, we still have some serious deficiencies that were commented on by recent site locators and journalists visiting our city.  Our infrastructure, roads, sewers, etc. are dated.  Stick around long enough and you will find many city services wanting, OPS is a failed school system, and our police and fire union contracts are exorbitant. All of these problems are exacerbated or created by the constant budget drain of filling outrageous union contract demands.  None of these problems will change on their own – we must take action.

The most recent Census Reports also confirm these trends, “Shift to Outskirts Surprises Cities,” OWH 3/2/11.  People are moving to where the jobs are – away from top-heavy, expensive labor contract cities and states and to right-to-work cities and states.  And, why wouldn’t they?  Even many of our police and fire personnel live outside of Omaha to escape the heavy burden their contracts cost those of us who stay.  Let’s stop pushing this problem down the road. Let’s act now to fix this. The Alliance is forming taxpayer, business owners, and concerned citizen action groups and committees to cause these changes to happen now – later is just too late.  Please join us.

OPS Administration in need of reform

CAN’T WAIT FOR SUPERMAN

By the
OmahaAlliance.com Board

Recently, John Mackiel announced his retirement as OPS superintendent.  A week later, OPS released its worst test
scores in 18 years.  Coincidence?  Who knows? Whether you loved or hated Mackiel, no Superman is going to fix OPS no matter who you hire next, no matter how long you wait, and no matter how often you blame poverty (you know, bad schools increase the rate of poverty, exacerbating a downward spiral).  After Mackiel’s ten years on the job, expensive bond issues, new construction, the end of busing, a new Learning Community, and more, OPS is still too big, too top heavy, and has simply not succeeded in its mission to educate our children.  OPS is a failed school district:  that’s a fact – and everybody knows it.

If a business faced this kind of performance, it would be time to close or reorganize, reassess your strategic plan, and make bold changes.  That’s what OPS should do – break apart and reorganize.  Here are a couple of suggestions worth considering: 1) Include the other area school districts by giving them one OPS high school and a complement of junior high and elementary schools.  Westside could take Benson, Bennington – Northwest, Bellevue – Bryon, Elkhorn – Burke, leaving North, South, and Central as the new OPS; or, 2) Keep OPS’ boundaries, but make each of the seven high schools a mini-district and let those districts compete, better yet – give students vouchers to use within this reconstructed district; or, 3) Use a Senator Chambers’- like plan breaking OPS into three parts; or, 4) Shop around the country for a “best practice,” like an Arizona Plan that allows parents and students more choice and more types of schools to choose from.  Whatever works, because what we are doing now does not!

A change in superintendent is an opportunity for OPS to consider much bigger structural improvements and reassess its vision.  The School Board, Learning Community, and legislature should use this opportunity to act, be prepared with a fully vetted restructuring plan BEFORE the legislative session opens so that any changes can be made in advance of any new hiring and another school year begins.   We need a strong, well-educated workforce that matches the incredibly vibrant and productive Omaha business community’s needs. We cannot afford to waste another ten years – another half generation of Omaha school children ground up as the grist in the OPS school mill.

YouTube Direkt