If you think this is a good deal--we want to hear from you.

All opinions are welcome !

Marti Brown on the Deal with Police

"Hey, the elephant is a pillar," said the first man who touched his leg.
"Oh, no! It’s like a rope," exclaimed the second man who touched the tail.
"It’s a thick branch of a tree," shouted the third man touching its trunk.
"Oh, no! It’s a big hand fan" called the fourth man who touched its ear….etc…

 
But are we seeing the entire “elephant” by settling on an agreement with the POA that extends the contract an additional two years to 2012 without contract agreements with the other three city unions? How will this agreement impact the City’s long term fiscal health and what does the “elephant” really “look” like? Where will we get the money to pay for these contracts? For example, the proposed longevity pay, health benefits, retiree health benefits and sick leave cash out seem to exceed the results of comparable cities in the Bay Area as shown in the City’s Salary and Compensation Survey Findings. Furthermore, does it make sense to compare Vallejo to other Bay Area cities that have a higher standard of living such as Berkeley and Alameda where the median home values are currently $695,000 and $648,000, respectively, versus Vallejo’s $246,000?
 
Having just completed four months of labor contract negotiations in Sacramento, I completely understand why the City and the POA have developed this Tentative Agreement to be voted on by City Council at Tuesday’s meeting. From the POA perspective, there are four unions and it’s simple: the early bird gets the worm! If I was the president of any City unions, I’d be working day and night to craft a deal before the other three unions. After all, it’s a union president’s job to represent the interests of the membership. From the management perspective, it’s standard practice to barter a deal with one union first so that pressure can be applied to the other unions and additional contracts can be negotiated (usually with fewer resources remaining).
 
But is this the best plan for Vallejo residents? Because of the way the deal has been struck (e.g., in a vacuum) we won’t really know until the very end how this will fiscally impact the city and its residents. It’s not a comprehensive approach to the City’s fiscal condition—it’s more of the same old piece meal way of doing things to resolve City problems. We need to look at all of the unions and all of our resources collectively and develop a sustainable fiscal plan that will move the city forward for the long term. We need a deal with all four unions based on the salaries, benefits and cost of living standards of similar cities in the region, as well as the city’s ability to pay these salaries and benefits. This Supplemental Agreement is not that plan.
 
There’s an old Swahili saying: “When elephants fight, the grass gets crushed; when elephants ‘make love’, the grass gets crushed.” The elephants always seem to be fighting or ‘making love’ at City Hall and Vallejoans always seem to be the ‘grass’ getting crushed. It’s time we change that.