Laserfiche WebLink
THURSDAY, JUNE 3, 1999 <br /> <br />labor rates at private sector garages was compared to the rates at the City Garage, and was told that private <br /> <br />rates were around $47-$48 per hour, versus the City' s rates of about $15.38 per hour. Vice-Mayor Teague <br />then stated that his calculations showed that the differences in labor rates were so great that if more work was <br />contracted out the savings in costs by doing the added work in-house would offset the cost of the new <br />position within less than one month. Council Member Dallas stated that all sorts of comparisons could be <br />demonstrated, but that the city just could not afford the requested position, and that the line must be drawn <br />somewhere. Vice-Mayor Teague stated that the message was that the $30,000 or more saved by not having <br />to contract out work would cover the cost of the position. Council Member Dallas then stated that there was <br />not enough work to keep the existing mechanics busy, and that they only did about five hours of work per <br />day. He also asked the Vice-Mayor how a tax increase could be justified if it became needed as a result of <br />increased costs of operations. Council Member Roop stated that no one had more respect for City employees <br />than he, but adding personnel needed to be looked at very closely. He stated that other positions must be <br />looked at to see if they could be used to support the needs stated. Council Member Roop stated that the <br />Council must figure out ways to increase the City's population before adding new employees, and that it was <br />his hope that a smaller, better compensated work force could be created to answer the needs of the City. He <br />also stated that he did not believe that creation of cost savings should be the only criteria for creating new <br />positions, although he recognized that using inmates in the garage for many years had created an <br />understaffed situation, and that this had been the wrong thing to do. Council Member Roop then asked how <br />many people were working on school buses before this responsibility was transferred to the City Garage, and <br />suggested that the School System might need to pick up a share of these costs. Council Member Roop then <br />stated that it was difficult for him to support new positions anywhere unless critical public safety or related <br />issues were at risk. Vice-Mayor Teague then stated that he had a problem philosophically with spending <br />more to contract out work than doing it in-house. Council Member Roop said that he did not think that one <br />additional position would really help, and that it looked like even more positions would have to be added in <br />the coming years. Council Member Dallas said that if that were the case the Council needed to prepare for <br /> <br /> <br />