Letter to the Editor March 3, 2011
The CitizenI have listed the 2011 base salaries of the 10 Centerville city employees, provided at my request.
Employee 1: $96,564
Employee 2: $67,163
Employee 3: $83,952
Employee 4: $63,461
Employee 5: $51,085
Employee 6: $47,299
Employee 7: $55,162
Employee 8: $55,162
Employee 9: $55,162
Employee 10: $50,752
The salaries total about $626,000. When you add in 35 percent for pension benefits, health care, payroll taxes, workers compensation and liability insurance; the total cost to the taxpayers is approximately $845,000. When overtime earnings, part-time employee pay, and mayor and council members’ salaries are taken into account, the total approaches $1 million, about half the city’s yearly budget.
The city’s Personnel Policies handbook indicates that employees enjoy 11 paid holidays plus one l oating holiday. Work on holidays is paid at 2.5 times the hourly rate of pay. Paid personal time of accrues based on years of service: after 10 years, for example, employees accrue 9.85 hours paid time off per 2-week pay period.
City employees belong to a PERA “defined benefit plan,” which is in addition to Social Security retirement benefits. No matter what the economy does, they can count on a guaranteed retirement benefit based on salary and years of service. Most private sector employees are not so fortunate; as their pensions (if they have one) are subject to gains/losses that more closely mirror the economy. Private pension plans are not guaranteed.
I believe our Mayor and Council could reduce some of these costs. It seems excessive to have five full-time employees at City Hall. It doesn’t take very long to do payroll every other week; they certainly aren’t busy issuing building permits.
With all the advances in information technology, the administrative work could be done more efficiently than it is at present. If there is not enough work to keep everyone busy full time, perhaps hours should be cut.
Also, Public Works could contract out some of their work and reduce the work force. The City of Oak Park Heights, for instance, contracts out all their snow removal. It saves them money.
With some innovation I think personnel costs could be trimmed by 10 percent or more. It should be up to our Mayor and Council to explore some of these ideas— and possibly others. We are simply paying too much for city services.
Dean Luxenburg
Centerville
Editor’s note: A call to Centerville City Hall clarifies that exempt employees—such as the City Administrator and Public Works Director—do not receive extra pay for working weekends or holidays. The rate of pay for working on a holiday (2.5) includes holiday pay in addition to time-and-a-half. Also, according to the City Administrator, the State of Minnesota mandates that city employees pay into both PERA and Social Security
