Brandon Twp.- After months of wrangling and a budget workshop meeting during which a 5-percent wagecut for all full-time township employees was authorized, boardmembers appear set to approve a balanced budget. A public hearing regarding the 2010 township budget will be held during the township board’s regularly scheduled meeting set for 7:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 7.
During a Dec. 1 budget workshop meeting, the board voted 4-3 to approve a 5 percent wage cut for all full-time employees, keep the recreation programmer as a full-time employee and make up a roughly $1,000 shortfall from any available line item in the budget.
‘I supported this motion only because my goal is to keep a trained, experienced staff as long as we can,? said McCreery. ‘We have a couple people retiring in 2010 and a couple more in 2011 and for the 2012 election, we could actually cut three full-time officials to part-time status’half the salary and without the benefits.?
In a letter and petition dated Nov. 23, 13 full-time township employees indicated they would all be willing to accept a 5 percent reduction in pay for 2010 only, with the issue to be revisited for 2011 based on savings from potential new retirees.
The board’s approval of the wagecut keeps the recreation programmer position full-time rather than part-time. Diane Lapp currently serves as the recreation programmer.
‘We offered to take a 5 percent decrease in the best interest of the township to maintain the level of service to the residents and because that way all employees are affected, contribution to retirement is maintained, and we maintain level of service to the community with proper staffing,? said Diana Bertapelle, administrative assistant to the clerk. ‘The employees? plan was not just to save the programmer’s position at full-time, but to take into consideration all of those other things.?
Thurman and Carlson had favored a motion to eliminate the part-time senior center programmer position, reduce the recreation programmer position to part-time, and have higher reductions from the recreation and senior center budgets. That motion failed due to lack of support from any other boardmembers.
The current budget of approximately $1,685,000 eliminates the part-time senior center programmer position and keeps the recreation programmer full-time.
‘There are still percentage cuts to each department, but there is more of a cut to the senior center than the recreation department,? Thurman said. ‘I voted no because number one, it threw off the percentages that we were originally striving for and number two, I didn’t think it was fair to supplement one employee’s wages over another. I thought the offer of the employees to take a 5 percent wage cut was very commendable and selfless in an effort to save jobs. The problem is that it was all pointed toward one job, without consideration of the other job.?
Thurman called the budget ‘very bare bones.? Besides the reductions in each department, other cuts include reducing road chloride applications for the year from five to three, another year of not participating in the NO-HAZ program, and a change in healthcare for employees.
The budget also takes into consideration the retirement next year of Deputy Supervisor Mary Kassuba and Deputy Clerk Karen McArthur. Thurman said both positions will be replaced with part-time seasonal employees.
Additionally, the trustees are capping to $300 per month the per diem fee they receive for attending meetings, while the treasurer, clerk and supervisor have offered to donate parts of their salaries, circumventing a state law that prevents them taking a wage cut. Beltramo will donate 16 percent of his $48,577 annual salary, McCreery will donate 5 percent of her salary, which is also $48,577, and Thurman will donate 2 percent of her $55,518 salary.