Harford County employees will get a retroactive salary increase under legislation set for a public hearing before the County Council on Tuesday, November 13th. The proposed 4% merit raise will be retroactive to July 1st, and will be paid to eligible county employees in all county departments, the sheriff’s office, the state’s attorney’s office and the public library. The proposed raise does not include employees of Harford County Public Schools or Harford Community College.
The council plans a November 20th vote on the legislation, Council President Billy Boniface said on Monday.
Harford County Executive David Craig proposed the 4% increase in early October, three months into the 2013 fiscal year, citing higher than expected income tax revenues and efficiencies from prior cutbacks. New jobs from the federal Base Realignment and Closure (BRAC), which benefitted Aberdeen Proving Ground, contributed to the increased revenues, county officials said. The proposed legislation allocates $4.4 million for the raises, which will potentially affect between 1,700 – 1800 workers, said Bob Thomas, spokesman for Craig.
The county employees covered by the proposed legislation have not had an increase in four years; a period that also included layoffs and unpaid furlough days for some.
Teachers’ union president Ryan Burbey said on Monday that county employees deserved the proposed raise, even though it does not include school employees. However, Burbey did question why the increase wasn’t part of the budget from the outset, since it will be retroactive to the beginning of the fiscal year. “Apparently, the money was always there,” he said. Citing an earlier presentation on county finances commissioned by the union, Burbey also said that the county was “lowballing” revenue projections, but he declined to speculate why.
County funding for Harford County Public Schools was flat for the fiscal year 2013, except for a $5.5 million increase to offset the cost of teacher pensions, which are gradually being shifted from the state to the counties. School employees got a 1% raise, however, plus a step increase and longevity increase for those who were eligible, funded by cuts in the school system’s budget. Those cuts, made by the school board, included 66 teaching positions, but no layoffs. “I think it’s a terrible shame that they were forced to cut teaching positions,” Burbey said.
A copy of the proposed legislation appears below:
BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
COUNTY COUNCIL OF HARFORD COUNTY, MARYLAND
BILL NO. 12-47
Introduced by Council President Boniface at the request of the County Executive
Legislative Day No. 12-28 Date: October 9, 2012
AN ACT to make an appropriation of funds to the General Fund, the Highways Fund, the Parks & Recreation Fund, the Agricultural Preservation Fund, the Water & Sewer Fund and the Solid Waste Fund for the current fiscal year; to provide the necessary funding to cover estimated expenses to be incurred during Fiscal Year 2013 attributable to a merit increase for qualified employees of Harford County Government and Harford County Public Library.
By the Council, October 9, 2012
Introduced, read first time, ordered posted and public hearing scheduled
on: November 13, 2012
at: 6:30 PM
By Order: Council Administrator
PUBLIC HEARING
Having been posted and notice of time and place of hearing and title of Bill having been published according to the Charter, a public hearing was held on and concluded on:
__________________________________, Council Administrator
EXPLANATION: CAPITALS INDICATE MATTER ADDED TO
EXISTING LAW. [Brackets] indicate matter
deleted from existing law. Underlining indicates
language added to Bill by amendment. Language
lined through indicates matter stricken out of Bill
by amendment. BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
1
1 WHEREAS, on October 2, 2012, the County Executive, on behalf of Harford County,
2 Maryland, entered into an Agreement with the AFSCME Local 1802, Council 67 and MCEA
3 Chapter 610; and
4 WHEREAS, the County Executive agreed to give all eligible employees a merit increase of
5 4% retroactive to July 1, 2012; and
6 WHEREAS, employees not receiving a “meets standards” evaluation for the period ending
7 March 31, 2012 will not be eligible to receive said merit increase; and
8 WHEREAS, any employee who received a pay raise during FY2013 not tied to a promotion
9 to a higher level classification will not be eligible for the merit increase; and
10 WHEREAS, any employee who received a merit increase less than 4% in FY2013 will
11 receive a merit increase equal to the difference between the raise received and 4% if otherwise
12 eligible; and
13 WHEREAS, all parties to the Agreement acknowledge that the merit increase is contingent
14 upon adoption of this Act by the County Council; and
15 WHEREAS, if this legislation is amended by the County Council, then the Agreement
16 between AFSCME, MCEA and the County may require modification; and
17 WHEREAS, the County intends if at all possible to provide the retroactive payment to all
18 eligible employees by December 31, 2012; and
19 WHEREAS, the County Executive has recommended a supplemental appropriation to the
20 expense budget for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2013, in accordance with Section 517 of the
21 Charter of Harford County, Maryland; and
22 WHEREAS, such funds are necessary to provide for additional budgetary authority to
23 provide a merit increase to eligible Government and Library employees; and
24 WHEREAS, the Treasurer has certified that such funds are available for appropriation.
BILL NO. 12-47
2
1 NOW, THEREFORE,
2 Section 1. Be It Enacted By The County Council of Harford County, Maryland, that the expense
3 budget for the fiscal year ending June 30, 2013, be, and it is hereby, amended by making an
4 appropriation from the unappropriated fund balance to the fund balance appropriated to increase
5 appropriated expenditures in the below-listed amounts and funds for the purpose detailed:
6 Increase in FY2013 Appropriations
7 Appropriations – Revenues:
8 General Fund
9 Fund Balance Appropriated
10 Account No. 001100-R8023…………………………………………………………$3,508,747
11 Highways Fund
12 Fund Balance Appropriated
13 Account No. 002500-R8023……………………………………………………………$463,610
14 Parks & Recreation Fund
15 Fund Balance Appropriated
16 Account No. 002600-R8023……………………………………………………………..$14,165
17 Agricultural Preservation Fund
18 Fund Balance Appropriated
19 Account No. 002700-R8023……………………………………………………………….$2,270
20 Water & Sewer Fund
21 Net Assets – Appropriated
22 Account No. 005100-R6500……………………………………………………………$432,723
23 Total Revenues: ………………………………………………………………………………………$4,421,515
24 Increase in FY2013 Appropriations
25 Appropriations – Expenditures:
26 General Fund
27 Office of the County Executive
28 Account No. 011000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$9,500
29 BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
3
1 Chief of Staff of the County Executive
2 Account No. 013000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$10,980
3 Division of Agricultural Affairs
4 Account No. 014000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,875
5 Constituent Services
6 Account No. 015000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$9,440
7 Director of Administration
8 Account No. 021000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$9,435
9 Sustainability Office
10 Account No. 021500-1101 …………………………………………………………………$5,140
11 Facilities and Operations
12 Account No. 022000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$57,197
13 Central Services
14 Account No. 023100-1101 …………………………………………………………………$5,449
15 Budget & Management Research
16 Account No. 024000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$21,325
17 Risk Management
18 Account No. 029000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$43,030
19 Procurement Operations
20 Account No. 031000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$24,305
21 Property Management
22 Account No. 034000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$10,965
23 Office of the Treasurer
24 Account No. 041000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$19,835
25 Bureau of Accounting
26 Account No. 043000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$54,975
27 Bureau of Revenue Collections
28 Account No. 044000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$21,335
29 Solid Waste Accounting
30 Account No. 047100-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,275
BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
4
1 Legal Services
2 Account No. 052000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$63,996
3 Director of Planning & Zoning
4 Account No. 061000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$16,280
5 Comprehensive Planning
6 Account No. 062000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$41,071
7 Current Planning
8 Account No. 063000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$49,220
9 Human Resources
10 Account No. 082000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$22,094
11 Director of Community Services
12 Account No. 091000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$17,713
13 Office of Drug Control
14 Account No. 094000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$18,587
15 094000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$7,959
16 Community Development
17 Account No. 095000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$16,896
18 095000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$7,390
19 Emergency Assistance
20 Account No. 096300-1101 …………………………………………………………………$2,935
21 Office on Aging
22 Account No. 097100-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$32,829
23 097100-7104 ……………………………………………………………….$34,010
24 Harford Transit
25 Account No. 097200-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$21,680
26 097200-7104 ……………………………………………………………….$44,860
27 Housing Services
28 Account No. 171000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$8,483
29 171000-7104 ……………………………………………………………….$20,630
30 BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
5
1 Information Technology
2 Account No. 181000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$74,730
3 Administration & Support
4 Account No. 211100-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$125,825
5 Patrol Operations
6 Account No. 211200-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$528,960
7 211200-7104 …………………………………………………………………$3,375
8 Criminal Investigation
9 Account No. 211300-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$159,220
10 Correctional Services
11 Account No. 212000-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$350,385
12 Inmate Welfare Fund
13 Account No. 212100-1101 …………………………………………………………………$1,840
14 Court Services
15 Account No. 213000-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$113,715
16 213000-7104 ……………………………………………………………….$15,710
17 Emergency Services – Administration
18 Account No. 221000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$21,045
19 221000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$5,705
20 911 Emergency Communications
21 Account No. 222100-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$159,911
22 Special Operations & Technical Services
23 Account No. 222200-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$19,904
24 Hazmat Response Team
25 Account No. 225000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$7,945
26 Director of DILP
27 Account No. 261000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$14,690
28 Building Services
29 Account No. 263000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$30,225
30 BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
6
1 Plumbing Services
2 Account No. 264000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$14,375
3 Electrical Services
4 Account No. 265000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$17,770
5 Manufactured Housing/Abandoned Property
6 Account No. 266000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$6,460
7 Animal Control
8 Account No. 267000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$16,305
9 Environmental Affairs Administration
10 Account No. 301111-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$19,000
11 Recycling
12 Account No. 301241-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$32,140
13 County Council Office
14 Account No. 401000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$9,096
15 Harford Cable Network
16 Account No. 406000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$13,851
17 Cultural Arts Board
18 Account No. 407000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$2,445
19 Circuit Court
20 Account No. 411000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$36,460
21 Jury Commissioner
22 Account No. 414000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,590
23 Masters
24 Account No. 415000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,985
25 415000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$3,975
26 Community Work Service
27 Account No. 416000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$8,765
28 Family Court Services Division
29 Account No. 417000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$6,675
30 BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
7
1 Office of the State’s Attorney
2 Account No. 431000-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$116,098
3 431000-7104 ……………………………………………………………….$31,480
4 Child Advocacy Center
5 Account No. 432000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,361
6 Board of Elections
7 Account No. 481000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$8,552
8 County Libraries
9 Account No. 581000-7102 ……………………………………………………………..$420,042
10 Parks & Recreation Administration
11 Account No. 591000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$25,323
12 Recreation Services
13 Account No. 593000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$82,746
14 593000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$6,377
15 Parks & Facilities
16 Account No. 595000-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$117,977
17 595000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$1,660
18 Soil Conservation
19 Account No. 633000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$9,616
20 633000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$2,400
21 Office of Economic Development
22 Account No. 651000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$36,368
23 651000-7104 …………………………………………………………………$7,811
24 Tourism & Marketing
25 Account No. 652000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,430
26 Highways Fund
27 Fleet Maintenance
28 Account No. 032000-1101 …………………………………………………………………$5,755
29 Director of Public Works
30 Account No. 303110-1101 …………………………………………………………………$3,240
BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
8
1 Bureau of Capital Projects Management
2 Account No. 303125-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$19,410
3 Bureau of Highways Engineering
4 Account No. 303210-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$65,960
5 Bureau of Construction Management
6 Account No. 303220-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$74,105
7 Bureau of Water Resources
8 Account No. 303310-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$35,720
9 Bureau of Highways Maintenance
10 Account No. 303410-1101 ……………………………………………………………..$259,420
11 Parks & Recreation Fund
12 Emmorton Recreation & Tennis Center
13 Account No. 593002-1101 …………………………………………………………………$4,110
14 Oakington Peninsula
15 Account No. 593003-1101 …………………………………………………………………$7,435
16 Recreational Council Activities
17 Account No. 593004-1101 …………………………………………………………………$2,620
18 Agricultural Preservation Fund
19 Ag Preservation – County
20 Account No. 064270-1101 …………………………………………………………………$2,270
21 Water & Sewer Fund
22 Water and Sewer Accounting
23 Account No. 045000-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$19,940
24 Administration
25 Account No. 304110-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$22,266
26 Industrial Waste Management
27 Account No. 304200-1101 …………………………………………………………………$4,180
28 Joppatowne Sewage Treatment Plant
29 Account No. 304300-1101 …………………………………………………………………$5,050
30 BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
9
1 Water Engineering
2 Account No. 305101-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$18,040
3 Water O&M Abingdon
4 Account No. 305210-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$74,550
5 Water O&M Perryman
6 Account No. 305220-1101 …………………………………………………………………$2,775
7 Water O&M Long Booster Stations
8 Account No. 305240-1101 …………………………………………………………………$1,660
9 Water O&M Havre de Grace
10 Account No. 305250-1101 …………………………………………………………………$4,655
11 Water O&M Joppatowne
12 Account No. 305260-1101 …………………………………………………………………$1,320
13 Water O&M Abingdon Big Inch
14 Account No. 305280-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$75,982
15 Sewer Engineering
16 Account No. 306101-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$18,040
17 Sewer O&M Abingdon
18 Account No. 306210-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$53,440
19 Sewer O&M Pump/Meter Stations
20 Account No. 306220-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$33,895
21 Sewer O&M Sod Run
22 Account No. 306230-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$94,650
23 Sewer O&M Spring Meadows
24 Account No. 306240-1101 ……………………………………………………………………$940
25 Sewer O&M Joppatowne
26 Account No. 306260-1101 …………………………………………………………………$1,340
27 Solid Waste Fund
28 Bureau of Solid Waste
29 Account No. 301211-1101 ……………………………………………………………….$70,735
30 Total Expenditures:………………………………………………………………………………….$4,421,515
BILL NO. 12-47
BILL NO. 12-47
10
1 Section 2. And Be It Further Enacted that this Act shall take effect on the date it becomes law.
2 Section 3. And Be It Further Enacted that the merit increase provided for herein shall be
3 retroactive to July 1, 2012.
EFFECTIVE:
The Council Administrator does hereby certify that
fifteen (15) copies of this Bill are immediately available for
distribution to the public and the press.
___________________________________________________
Council Administrator
Ms. Mumby, The link is not working, but I am guessing that the deputies given a raise mentioned in the previous article are included. If that is right, your statement “The county employees covered by the proposed legislation have not had an increase in four years” is likely a line provided by the County and not entirely correct. 6% percent and another 4% percent. Sounds like 70 or so Sheriff deputies are loving this year! Just don’t ask Bane about it. He is left out of the loop on these decisions. Anyone else out there get not one, but two raises totaling 10% in the last three months?
http://www.daggerpress.com/2012/08/30/harford-county-sheriff%E2%80%99s-office-deputies-receive-raises-new-rank-despite-banes-objections/
Bane sounds like Obama. Bane claims he can’t be held accountable if he doesn’t know about it.
That is called ‘plausible deniability’ and Reagan used it quite often.
Common tactic that is unfortunately accepted.
where did Harford County get the money for the raises???Maybe he is laying of some more employees and hire some more friends and family and give them the big bucks like he did before
The only question I have is it says those “eligible” for the “merit” raise, so does that mean everyone gets 4%, or do only the top performers get the full 4% and others get less, or is it one of those systems where unless you attack a co-worker everyone gets a 4% “merit” raise?
Hopefully the line managers get to divide their portions up like private businesses. That way, top performers can get more than 4%, while bottom performers can get less.
Not gonna work that way “Common Cents”. If the employee gets a good evaluation, then that employee is eligible for the 4% merit raise.
So, it’s either 4% or nothing.
The details were added after I posted, but it does appear you are right. You are either 4% or nothing, which is too bad. It would be as if we graded all our students at every level with pass/fail on everything. There’s no recognition of excelence and little motivation to excel.
When I worked at a non-profit, if the board approved a 4% increase, the top 25% in evaluations got 4%, the next 25% got 3%, and so on. Much fairer and makes much more sense.
To do otherwise creates a “phone it in” mentality.
Agree with you – but hey thats the way government works – so unlike the free market. Thats why government is destined to become bloated and inefficient.
Oh great now with more disposable income the local WAWA will be mobbed with county workers that can’t sit around and coffee or eat breakfast on their own time.
Sad but true Jim. The Cops hanging out next to the donut stand at the Bel Air Wawa are the best…
It is amazing that any weekday morning the Hickory WAWAs is mobbed with County employees. From the looks of them I would say they have already clocked in as they are in county vehicles. Hanging out on the taxpayer’s dime does not look good when the newspaper says they will be given a raise.
The raise (if approved) would not be “given”, it would be earned though merit and tenure. It has been 4 years of no pay increase for the vast majority of employees (except for the “Friends and Family” program participants), while employee costs (like everyone else’s) have increased. This 4% won’t return employees to their buying potential 4 years ago, but it will help to reduce the loss. 🙂
Blow it out your asshole, dipshit. Not everyone works 7 to 3, so these guys are likely on break whatever time you see them
Well, that’s not very nice. If they are on break I stand corrected and apologize. But it does seem like an inordinate amount of county workers there at the same time.
Nope, they are all fresh out of one of the shops in hickory, highway, schools parks and rec etc, on the way to their first job of the day. There is 1 bucket truck that does the road signs in there every morning I go by, with 3 guys all slouched down just a wasting time.
The wawa employees know them all by name, it’s like cheers in there every morning. I just wish I could get a job where someone would pay me and give me a raise to drive their truck around while getting my personal business done thatI should have taken care of on my own time…..
Our tax dollars hard(ly) at work
Jim, is there a forest beyond those trees?
Lots of people hang out at Wa-Wa’s, it’s the purpose of a convenience store. Since when is it illegal for county government employees not to do that? We are still in America, right, Comrade?
It’s pretty funny the self-hard fist pumping whistle blowing internet heros want to spout off “wasting our tax dollars” and all the other terms of wasting time and money for the common hungry man down low on the totem pole BUT… last time I checked, even county government employees pay taxes.
Jim, why don’t you start applying for that job then? Harford County Government has a website and frequently posts job openings.
Furthermore, what is it your business where they are getting food/coffee, and preparing for the first job of the day?
You may be unaware of WAWAs new hours, they are open all 24 of them in a row. Meaning what ever is available after they start work, is also available on their way to work.
A better investment of taxpayers monies would be putting real time GPS locators it county vehicles. Probably save enough in the first year to give us all a tax break.
Jim, you seem to lack a lot of common sense.
Not only would a GPS every day, all day, live positioning tracking system cost a million dollars to install, operate and keep operating, it would also cost thousands of dollars more to pay people to review the data. Maybe that’s a job for you?
Are you that oblivious that you really don’t think county vehicles don’t have GPS antennas on them now? You know, they are really small. Used differently in emergency and other situations, you know, like locating a stolen vehicle.
Again, did you know county government employees pay income taxes as well?
Yeah, I’m well aware of the choice to go into WaWa before work, but how do I know when that clock starts for them? Do you? I guess you do since you know everything about county government work, amirite? LOL
shedding some light why don’t you shed some tax payer funded down time and do some goddamned work.
Amirite???!!??
huh
I’m not a county employee, herp derp.. derp derp derp.
When ya see something ya don’t like, blow ya whistle
Toot toot
When ya se something that ya think ain’t right, blow ya whistle
Toot toot
When ya see something that makes you hot and bothered, blow ya whistle
Toot toot
Stomp ya feet
Toot toot
Shake ya fist
Toot toot
Toot toot toot
Ima blowin mah whistle
Toot toot
You like that song? I wrote it just for you
Many of these comments begin with “maybe” or “it appears as if” admitting that they don’t know for sure but that sure doesn’t prevent them from spouting their uninformed opinion. Those agency members drive those cars to and from work so that is no indication as to whether those hours are during their assigned shift but rest assured if something were to happen they would respond. Also, we don’t come to your work and count your smoke breaks….if I did and I needed something would you put your cigarette down immediately to help me….probably not. Line 8 says that any employee that received a raise not tied to a promotion is not eligible so whether the “senior deputies” receive this raise depends on whether the senior deputy is considered a promotion by agency standards. Given Bane’s position against the senior deputy raise I would say he will find a way for them not to get this 4% but either way 70 deputies in the grand scheme of 1800 employees is really insignificant. Our rating system is a 1-2-3 rating system, 1-does not meet standards 2-meets standards 3-exceeds standards. Everyone seems to ignore that when the power was out, deputies left their homes in whatever condition they were in to man intersections and stand in the rain to help you get where you needed to go, when there is a flood we leave our homes to help you at yours. I can guarantee you none of us would stand in your way or speak out negatively about a raise at your job, I don’t think it is too much to ask for the same in return.
“I can guarantee you none of us would stand in your way or speak out negatively about a raise at your job, I don’t think it is too much to ask for the same in return.”
I guess the difference is I pay taxes that invariably fund county employee’s salaries. It just doesn’t look good when you see that many county vehicles, at the same time, at a convenience store. It would be more appropriate if they stopped on the way to work, got a cup of coffee, had their lunches made and socialized with their coworkers before they picked their vehicles up and headed out to work for the day. I’m sure they are hard working loyal employees, but the perception of ‘wasting time’ is quite apparent.
That’s fine. Now tomorrow when you go to work, I don’t want to see you taking any breaks, eating lunch, or socializing with your coworkers from the minute you’re supposed to be working until the minute you’re supposed to be home.
Get real, dude. County employees pay taxes too. If you work in private industry then whatever product your company sells pays your salary. It’s not like the money that pays for private sector employees’ salaries magically appears out of thin air…hell a lot of the “private sector” actually regularly do contract work for the government (be it local, state, or federal levels.) I got news for you…tax payers pay the salaries for the “private sector employees” (who so many seem believe are superior to public sector employees just because of the name at the top of their check) at those companies too.
The issue is accountability and efficiency, not source of income.
And we pay taxes as well as buy the goods and use the services that afford you employment, that doesn’t afford you the right to trash people. Most of the comments on here are ridiculous. The same people complaining are obviously at the wawa etc. as well. I guess because my employer puts markings on my vehicle or I wear a uniform that identifies me makes me a target for ridiculous criticism. It doesn’t even mean I am working while I may be there. It just means I am dressed for work. I could be going to or getting off. I can’t wait to tear into the next douche wearing a suit getting a coffee. How dare he do that! Sorry I wear a uniform for my job. It doesn’t mean anything other than I am dressed for work. If you don’t like paying taxes or are that concerned, go find somewhere else to live or something better to do.
@Steve- I guess the difference is I pay taxes that invariably fund county employee’s salaries. It just doesn’t look good when you see that many county vehicles, at the same time, at a convenience store. It would be more appropriate if they stopped on the way to work, got a cup of coffee, had their lunches made and socialized with their coworkers before they picked their vehicles up and headed out to work for the day. I’m sure they are hard working loyal employees, but the perception of ‘wasting time’ is quite apparent”
that is quite a mouthful you just spouted about, We county employees pay taxes as well as you do. I am mindful of the fact that what people perceive is their reality, however perception is not always as it seems. County employees taking breaks, stopping before their shift, lunch or a general break is no different that anyone else I see when I stop at Wawa or my local convenience store. I rather you complain about bad service received or lack of care when dealing with a county employee, however picking on someone’s need for lunch, a break or downtime is quite unfair. I suspect to you and more like you it wouldn’t really matter what we do because you just have a bias towards govt in general. I regularly come in to work early, see people late, respond to emails in my own personal time just to keep up with the staffing cut backs on my dept. I have worked for private, non-profit and govt during my career and I haven’t experienced the kind of disdain that some have for public service employees. It is quite a shock sometimes that otherwise smart people make such general assumptions about my ability and commitment to my work just by the mere fact that taxes pay my salary. FYI, there is just as much time wasted on govt work as there is in private or non-profit. I see plenty of landscaping crews, roofers, plumbers and air conditioning trucks at Wawa as there are county vehicles, so the fact that a crew stops in to grab a bite, coffee or lunch should not be demonized. I respect the fact that as a consumer you have the right to complain about stuff that you are unhappy about, just don’t make it about your perception of things but reality.
>”I see plenty of landscaping crews, roofers, plumbers and air conditioning trucks at Wawa as there are county vehicles, so the fact that a crew stops in to grab a bite, coffee or lunch should not be demonized.”
They often get paid by the job and not by the hour. When they work, they work hard, or they go out of business and employment. They or at least the managers suffer direct consequences from failure to perform.
@Roman writes
“FYI, there is just as much time wasted on govt work as there is in private or non-profit.”
Yes, and those businesses with poor employees who are inefficient go out of business while government employees just keep on going, slower and lazier, slower and lazier, rinse repeat, rinse repeat…
Who cares if you pay taxes, all people who own property pay taxes.
Roman have some turd with your WAWA coffee you shiftless bastard.
Sometimes businesses don’t go out of business, they just make less money due to waste. I once worked for a business that spent $20k for a company party and the next week laid off 4 employees due to “lack of profit”. The private sector has just as many skeletons in their closet as a non-profit or private enterprise. While the taxpayer has every right to complain for lack of service when requested, the fact is that govt work is often thankless because its free service on demand or due to emergency as there isn’t anyone else there to provide it. I don’t think seeing someone at a local convenience store really tells you if that person just worked a 12hr shift at 911 or if the employee just cleared a dead deer from a local road or an employee just covered a shift at the local jail.
@Over-more like over the top. People get fired from govt too. In the past 8 yrs since I been here, I have seen some people fired for theft, negligence, conflict of duties, no-shows, sick leave abusers and the like. It happens in govt too, maybe not as often as employees actually have collective rights and management can’t just fire people because a new administration comes in. In addition, all county employees are either appointed, classified or grant funded..all of them serve at will of both the county and the employee themselves. Your rude and demeaning insults towards me reflect more on you than anything else you could say about us civil servants.
Government never goes out of business.
Do they ever get fired for just being plain lazy?
I’ve seen more than enough of that from the inside.
Too often there are one or two people pulling the load for another half dozen that are along for the ride.
Warming a seat for 8 hours hardly qualifies someone as competent or deserving of respect.
The county could save alot of money if they would do away with take home cars for thier employees.
Not just the county, but the state and federal government as well. We’re in a perfect position being so close to government at all levels…check the number of “official” license plates. I understand why in the private sector salesfolks are given vehicles but 99.9% of government jobs do not require travel so why do so many have cars that we pay for? It’d be interesting to see a list of assigned vehicles and the employment descriptions for each. As a side note – were you all aware that the federal government provides a stipend for employees who take public transportation, not just to cover the costs but to incent (assumably) and that includes residents of Washington DC, who would take the subway anyway. It’s a flippin joke and sadly the joke’s on us.
Actually its quite the opposite. With. Police take homes,.it creates a more police prescense within the county.
With public works take homes, employees can respond directly to an incident.
Take home vehicles are generally more cared for compared to pol, saving the tax payer New vehicle costs more and less maintenance
Next time your toilet isn’t flushing after you take a massive shit, stinking up your house something foul. Any allowable take home employees cam respond faster to a broken water main.
The police I understand; public works personal vehicles riding around; taking them home and filling the gas tanks on the taxpayers dime is total abusive bunk 99% of the time.
Slight correction…the abuse is the vehicle free for all; most of the time it’s for the convenience and another “freebie” to the public employee and has nothing to do with a taxpayer advantage.
Respond faster to a broken water main?
Only relevant if they are taking the work truck, tools, and work crew home with them as well.
@The Money Tree
If a true audit were done matching miles driven and fuel purchased for vehicles on county business we will find abuses and the lack of fiscal justification.
This practice is a financial benefit that is abused by employees.
County employees can get up a bit earlier on their time and drive to where their county vehicle is and begin their work for taxpayers and county residents.
Not to mention private sector employees who get paid mileage for use of their personal vehicle for work under IRS Rules cannot include the miles for commuting to their employers place of business.
Dah,na na na na.. na na na. Whistle blowers
Dah nah nana na na,
When there’s something strange, in the neighborhood, who you going to call?
Whistle blowers
Duh nah na na na, duh na naahh.
Despite your trolling intimations there is nothing wrong with whistle blowers.
They serve a needed function to defend against wateful expenditures.
I think this guy is a couple cans short of a six pack.
I think your 3 cans into the six pack. Go back to your county funded retirement and die soon.
Would really like to see a list of vehicles owned, leased or contracted by the county along with it’s use and principal place it’s kept to include all police cruisers, county trucks, buses, etc. but most importantly those class 1 vehicles we think of as non-work types, why they were purchases and who approved the purchase. We can start with the county, get the same information from the state and move on to the feds. Why do we have federal employees with well-marked federal licenses commuting from surrounding suburbs and by the thousands. With the feds purchases the bulk of Chevy Volts sure would be interesting to know for what purpose and to whom did they go?
You’ll also want a list of folks who get a car allowance or who are abusing/miscalculating mileage reimbursements.
Sorry but there is no reason for a vehicle with L/G on the license plate to be anywhere other than where county business is being conducted.
Claiming they are on break is pure BS. When some one from the zoning office goes on break do they get to take a county vehicle to go get a sausage gravy biscuit and a coffee? How about a teacher when the bell rings and the kiddies sit down does she walk out hop on a big yellow bus and head to the local McD’s for a McMuffin? There is often a sprinter van from the schools division out of Hickory in my neighbors driveway, he works there, yet the nearest school to my house is 7 miles…. why is he at home? His house doesn’t look like a school….
For some reason if you put someone in the divers seat of a $50,000+ county vehicle they suddenly forget they are being paid to do a job they are not doing.
Our tax dollars hard(ly) at work.
Yo bro, why don’t you ask these county government employees what they are doing instead of complaining about it on the internet forum, and asking non-county employees questions of “why”?
You seem to have a lot of free time yourself roaming Harford county with your polished whistle. Again.. if it concerns you, why don’t you be a man and ask these county employees face to face what they are doing?
I have and often the response is a big hearty fu buddy I got mine.
To all the take-car-home czars out here…really is that a major point to govt waste? are you guys seriously thinking that the county really lets the fleet is used for all these personal trips? If you go to most county lots you will find 90% of the county’s vehicles. The staff that takes a car home is usually on call, police, fire or emergency personnel. I can also tell you that lazy people eventually get put out of govt work as well, the county can’t afford slackers,butt kissers or employees that don’t pull their own share of the load. My dept has 6 less staff than 4 years ago and these positions are not coming back. Our work schedule and caseload doesn’t allow for people to mess around and do less than their job requires. we are graded by feds, state and local administration and seriously some folks have changed to private work so at least their hard work will be fairly compensated.
“I can also tell you that lazy people eventually get put out of govt work as well, the county can’t afford slackers,butt kissers or employees that don’t pull their own share of the load.”
Apparently the federal government can afford all of the above.
The employees staying are older and can’t really just leave due to their accumulated time and their skill set may not transfer as easily to the private market. The younger folks are finding out that working here is a good stepping stone towards federal, state or private practice. The one’s in the middle are leaving by droves as their time to earn real $$$ is now that the local govt won’t pay them according to their specialty, talent, hard work or more duties with no further compensation.