Time for tough staffing decisions

As the new year approaches, municipalities throughout the region are faced with 2009 budgets that need to be slashed in the face of declining revenue.

Ranging from the big - such as Naperville or Elgin - to the smaller communities like Antioch or Wauconda, layoffs have been ordered or at least considered as city councils and village boards decide what to do to balance the budget. Suburban governments, like so many local companies, are not immune.

The decisions on whether to lay off employees and then who to let go are never easy. As we said in an editorial in November, we take no delight in seeing good people laid off. But government must live within its means. And tough decisions must be made.

The city of Rolling Meadows, for example, approved a budget in early December that included plans to lay off eight employees, increase property taxes and tack on an additional electric tax. Hard choices, to be sure.

The layoff decision came after City Manager Tom Melena told the city council that staff would rather lay off people than freeze pay for everyone.

"Layoffs are a thing of life these days," said resident Steve Rybarczyk at a city council meeting in November. "What about laying people off and freezing pay? Can't you do both? It happens all the time."

Another resident said the added electric tax was a burden, especially to the high number of retired people in the city.

But the council later approved the layoffs and increased taxes with no wage freeze. Among the people to be laid off from the ranks of the fire, public works, finance and administration departments was Melena's secretary.

Yet, two weeks later, Melena, who is retiring at the end of this week, then tried to save his secretary's job even as public safety personnel are laid off. What really caught the council's attention - and the public's - was the fact his secretary was making $110,000 including benefits. Melena said her schedule could be reduced to four days and that salary reduced to $78,000 a year.

"On one hand, we're laying people off and on the other hand we're paying secretaries $100,000," said Alderman John Pitzaferro. "It doesn't make sense."

Indeed, it doesn't. The city council and new city manager Sarah Phillips need to take a closer look at the jobs being cut and make the hard decisions on what makes sense. A last-minute plea from the outgoing city manager to save his secretary at a time when residents are being asked to pay higher taxes is not appropriate.

By all accounts, Melena's secretary is one of the nicest people in city hall and does a fine job. But is the position essential? Can it be done for less money? That's the difficult decisions the city council and new city manager will need to make when it comes up for a vote on Jan. 13.

It's not a fun job to have to make those decisions - not in Rolling Meadows, not in any of the other suburbs facing similar choices. But tough times demand that tough personnel decisions be made.