Letters to the Editor 08-18-2004
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
By -
- No Taj-Mahal Here
No Taj-Mahal Here
Editor, Times-Union:You are getting lazy in your old age. I am referring to your recent column concerning the Taj-Mahal effect. You rail against the fire department purchase of a ladder truck saying what on Earth do they need it for, but nowhere did you say you picked up the phone and asked the fire chief how the purchase was justified. You claim to drive a vintage car and suggest the fire department do likewise. Did I not see published in your paper that the truck in question required extensive repairs that totaled many thousands of dollars? And if God forbid there should ever be a fire in one of the tall buildings downtown (there are a number of them three and four stories), would you want to be stranded on top of one as a result of equipment failure? I trust our fire chief to be looking out for the public safety until you can provide solid evidence otherwise.
You complain that city employees do not deserve the health insurance plan they have. I know you haven't been in the job market for 20 years but some things always hold true, you have to look at the total package of wages and benefits. I work for the city and aside from the low cost to the employee and family deductible, the plan is very average in every other way. As with most plans today, to get the best coverage you have to participate in PPO coverage. That means going to plan doctors, going to plan labs and mail-order prescriptions. There is a small dental benefit ($250 maximum per family) and no vision care. I know of a number of industries in the area that provide this or better. I am grateful for what we have. But look at the wages side of the equation. I know that starting wages for most positions in my department are below what other cities pay. I also know that they are much lower than comparable positions in local industry. One local city starts experienced employees at $3 hour more than Warsaw for licensed wastewater operators. But then they pay more for their insurance. So when most Warsaw city employees hired in they took the total package of wages and benefits into consideration. When the local economy is good we have a pretty fair employee turnover. So I don't believe we have moved into Taj-Mahal just yet.
Finally you complain that school officials are paid too much, even though you concede that salaries are in line with other school systems. I must admit that I too am a little jealous of some of the published salaries, but if that is what the market has determined is the going rate, then we have to pay them to keep them. If you really want to save money, then maybe when the consolidation is done we can eliminate some of the positions.
Jim Martin
Leesburg
via e-mail
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- No Taj-Mahal Here
No Taj-Mahal Here
Editor, Times-Union:You are getting lazy in your old age. I am referring to your recent column concerning the Taj-Mahal effect. You rail against the fire department purchase of a ladder truck saying what on Earth do they need it for, but nowhere did you say you picked up the phone and asked the fire chief how the purchase was justified. You claim to drive a vintage car and suggest the fire department do likewise. Did I not see published in your paper that the truck in question required extensive repairs that totaled many thousands of dollars? And if God forbid there should ever be a fire in one of the tall buildings downtown (there are a number of them three and four stories), would you want to be stranded on top of one as a result of equipment failure? I trust our fire chief to be looking out for the public safety until you can provide solid evidence otherwise.
You complain that city employees do not deserve the health insurance plan they have. I know you haven't been in the job market for 20 years but some things always hold true, you have to look at the total package of wages and benefits. I work for the city and aside from the low cost to the employee and family deductible, the plan is very average in every other way. As with most plans today, to get the best coverage you have to participate in PPO coverage. That means going to plan doctors, going to plan labs and mail-order prescriptions. There is a small dental benefit ($250 maximum per family) and no vision care. I know of a number of industries in the area that provide this or better. I am grateful for what we have. But look at the wages side of the equation. I know that starting wages for most positions in my department are below what other cities pay. I also know that they are much lower than comparable positions in local industry. One local city starts experienced employees at $3 hour more than Warsaw for licensed wastewater operators. But then they pay more for their insurance. So when most Warsaw city employees hired in they took the total package of wages and benefits into consideration. When the local economy is good we have a pretty fair employee turnover. So I don't believe we have moved into Taj-Mahal just yet.
Finally you complain that school officials are paid too much, even though you concede that salaries are in line with other school systems. I must admit that I too am a little jealous of some of the published salaries, but if that is what the market has determined is the going rate, then we have to pay them to keep them. If you really want to save money, then maybe when the consolidation is done we can eliminate some of the positions.
Jim Martin
Leesburg
via e-mail
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