City Council clashes over contract
“We had people coming in tonight and wanting to know, ‘How do you stop corruption from happening? And I said, ‘You know what, I can answer that question.’ You need to boycott Westcott, you need to oust Faust and canning Manning. That’s how you stop corruption, in my opinion.”
Moments after Thursday’s city council meeting, Mayor Brenda Davis repeated the sentiment, singling out council members Ken Westcott, Terry Faust and Joe Manning. Arguments between Davis and three of her colleagues have occurred regularly during monthly meetings, with Davis repeatedly calling city government a “good old boys club.”
The latest disagreement followed an approval to ratify a collective bargaining agreement between the city and Service Employees International Union Local 668. The three-year agreement affects eight administrative employees in the offices of the treasurer, parking authority and police department.
Davis took issue with the workers getting a raise, longevity clause and continuing to receive health insurance without contribution.
“I can’t sit up here and not represent tax payers. Health care contribution has to be given by employees,” said Davis, before she and Councilwoman Tracie Graham voted against the motion.
The ratification passed with Westcott, Faust and Manning voting in favor.
Susan Koehler, city deputy finance officer, said the increase in wages equals 55 cents per hour, an increase of $8,079 per year. She said that $6,000 was already built into the city budget to account for the cost.
“We’re talking a very small union,” she said. “They are the lowest paid in the union. They’re not making a lot of money. Their starting salary is $9.80 an hour.”
Koehler said a preventative screening program to help cut health care costs is mandatory. Workers and their spouses will have yearly screenings, like blood tests, to help diagnose illness. If they don’t comply, workers would have to pay $105 per month for health insurance.
“We’re trying to control costs,” Koehler said. “We’re trying to take the first step.”
Davis accused her colleagues of wasting city money.
“If you want to talk about giving the farm away, we are giving the city away,” Davis said. “(Westcott, Faust and Manning) are the ones giving the city away when it comes to union contracts.”
Manning pointed out that all city employees, including elected officials and police and fire department members, do not make contributions to health care coverage.
“What (the union) asked for was very reasonable. This is not going to make or break the city,” Manning said. “It’s insulting for (Davis) to say we’re giving the city away. I’ve gone over and above trying to save the city money on this.”
After walking out of the meeting, Faust said he would not dignify the mayor’s remarks with a response.
Westcott said the mayor’s remarks were “a joke.”
“We’re here to do a job,” he said. “And ‘Wipe out Westcott’ sounds a lot better.”