ANOTHER BAD IDEA FROM MAYOR PERKINS
7-16-07
With an election year on the horizon, Mayor Perkins has proposed another idea to get him votes. His proposal to give a 5% across the board raise to all city employees. This also is a very bad idea for Selma taxpayers and quite unfair and discriminatory toward city employees who are on the lower end of the pay scale.
For example, a 5% pay raise for Charlotte Griffeth, Community Development Director, who makes $60,000 a year would be a $3,000 a year raise. BY contrast, a laborer in the Public Works Department who makes $14,560 would only get a $728 a year raise. Before the proposed raise, Griffeth is making $45,440 MORE than a laborer. AFTER THE RAISE, SHE IS MAKING $47,712 MORE THAN A LABORER. What an across the board raise does is make the disparity between SALARIES OF CITY HALL CRONIES AND THE PEOPLE WHO WORK EVEN GREATER.
If a 5% raise is given, Attorney Nunn's salary will go from $61,000 to $64,050. With the additional $8000 he receives from CITY BOARDS, HIS SALARY would then BE MORE THAN MAYOR PERKINS. We don't see the King allowing this to happen.
5% means our $52,000 City Finance Director, Cynthia Mitchell would be making $54,600 while a Grounds Maintenance Worker in the Cemetery Department who makes $16,000 would be raised to only $16,800. Personnel Director Valeria Jones who makes $48,000 a year would now make $50,400 and our $48,197 TrustBuild Director, Sherri James, would make $50,606. Our opinion is that the Perkins Administration operates on the cultural philosophy OF GETTING ALL YOU CAN AS QUICK AS YOU CAN FROM THE TAXPAYERS BECAUSE GOVERNMENT MONEY IS NO ONE'S MONEY AND CITY GOVERNMENT IS AN EMPLOYMENT AGENCY.
When is the City Council going to get some backbone and put a stop to this reckless spending and when are they going to put a stop to incompetent, unqualified, and inept individuals ripping off the taxpayers of Selma? The next Mayor needs to clean house AT CITY HALL AND MOST DEPARTMENT HEADS SHOULD BE TERMINATED. We urge the city council not to adopt a budget next year that includes an across the board raise. That kind of raise is unfair and discriminatory AND IS NOT BASED ON MERIT. But then, no one ever accused the Perkins administration of being fair or operating on the basis of merit!
