Palatine Township trustees fight extra time off for employees

Palatine Township trustees aren't very popular figures among employees after shooting down management's decision to grant additional paid days off without consulting the board.

All four trustees this week spoke out against an April 20 memo from Supervisor Linda Fleming, Assessor Terry Kelly and Highway Commissioner John Powers outlining a 2010 program giving five extra days to the 19 full-time employees and 2½ days to 15 part-time employees.

"We're living in a time where employees are being forced to take unpaid furlough days, not getting extra vacation," Trustee Sharon Langlotz-Johnson said. "It's excessive."

Trustees signed their own memo apologizing to employees for being caught in the middle of a disagreement, and stating that the program needs further consideration and negotiation. Officials agreed to further discuss the item at the May 24 board meeting, where it may be put to a vote.

The extra time off came on the heals of the board's stance that it wouldn't approve a budget that calls for raises. Some trustees see the granting of extra time off as a way to circumvent the salary freeze. The board this spring passed a 2010-11 town fund and general assistance budget of about $2.5 million, with a road district budget of $2.3 million.

Trustee Art Goes, who said government workers shouldn't be immune from the current economic times, also argued Fleming, Kelly and Powers violated the spirit of the Open Meetings Act because there was never an agenda item on a change in policy regarding time off.

"We can't have administrators willy-nilly changing the employment conditions on a whim, either positive or negative," Goes said. "If their rights were taken away, the board would definitely jump in there too."

Trustee William Huley added the trio is "doing this behind the back of the board."

Langlotz-Johnson said that if business can continue to function uninterrupted with the added time off, perhaps the township is over-staffed. She told the board she suggested a day or two off for employees last year in lieu of a raise, only for the supervisor to say a strained staff could barely afford to take vacation time they already had.

Fleming, Kelly and Powers said they were simply looking for a no-cost morale booster that maintains a balanced budget while thanking employees for their hard work. Full-time employees' contributions for health benefits increased this year, Fleming added.

"We felt it was something we could all live with since there'd be no additional fees to the township," Fleming said. "These are not people with huge salaries and they work very, very hard."