Oh gee, isn’t that just ginchee! The city won’t have to lay off these folks after all – they “care so much about this community” that they will be given lesser positions. At lesser wages? That isn’t spelled out, I wouldn’t assume anything. It looks to me like they were really after only 18, and now that they got rid of those, the others will take little or no pay cut. And, they’ll still get their EPMC, just watch.
This was just a ploy to make all of us feel bad about these poor employees – pobrecitos! – who’ve sacrificed so much! I’m sorry, stop shoveling bullshit onto my plate, I’m not eating it.
Get ready for an intensive sales tax increase pitch, and get ready to be surprised who else is behind it.
Many pink-slipped employees to stay with city of Chico
Posted: 06/14/2013 12:06:27 AM PDT
CHICO — All but three employees issued pink slips last week by the city of Chico who have bumping rights have elected to use them to retain jobs.
Assistant City Manager Mark Orme said Thursday that of the 53 employees who received layoff notices last week, 35 had the option of using displacement rights to continue working for the city in a different capacity. Of those, one person elected to retire and two others will accept the layoff.
Employees had until Wednesday to notify the city of their decision.
“What is going to happen is we are going to go through the process of determining where these people can bump to and where they will end up,” Orme said.
To close a $4.8 million budget deficit, at least 40 full-time equivalent positions are slated for elimination in next year’s budget proposal, with cuts affecting every city department. Some positions are already vacant or upcoming retirements.
Any employees who could have potentially been affected by a bump were also issued layoff notices as a precaution, to be “comprehensive and fair with everybody from the start,” Orme said.
The city brought in the Employment Development Department and Unemployment Insurance for career counseling Thursday, and a presentation on the employee assistance program was Wednesday.
“They’ve had the opportunity to sit down and listen to these folks, they can ask questions, they can receive help if they need it and understand the entirety of the situation they are facing,”
Orme said.
“It was the most compassionate approach the city could take to make sure employees had every option available at this time.”
The number of employees who wish to stay with the city is a positive indicator, Orme said.
“What we’ve seen is the employees that care so much about this community and have dedicated so much time to the city of Chico that regardless of the position they find themselves in as this progresses forward, they are still ready and willing to serve the public in whatever capacity that might be,” he said.
Eighteen people who were issued pink slips did not have bumping rights. Any layoffs are contingent upon approval by the City Council, which will be discussing the 2013-14 budget Tuesday during an all-day study session.
Chico Taxpayers Association 
It’s amazing how the rats all scamper off to find another hiding place.
and also amazing how some rats seem to hang in there, like the Lando rat. He seems to be able to survive anything.
Oh look… While they are cutting back on police, they are hiring another BS administrator:
http://www.ci.chico.ca.us/human_resources_and_risk_management/job_opportunities/EconomicDevelopmentManager.asp
ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT MANAGER
maximum salary up to $10,581.42 per month,
Dang Jim, good work!
That’s just questionable to me – they’re supposed to be laying people off, cutting salaries – here they re-open a position that was just closed within the past few years due to, well, she didn’t DO ANYTHING. That would be Martha Westcoat-Andes – the woman they actually originally created the position for, because she was a friend of of Bob Linscheid’s who needed a job – $130,000, plus benies.
I can’t remember how long she lasted – less than five years, I think – and during that time, it became very clear to me that Jim Goodwin, former CEO of Chico Chamber of Commerce, was actually doing the job she had been hired for. Essentially, he studied the business climate locally and tried to figure out what would attract more businesses to town. In order to do this, Goodwin had to figure out what was attractive or unattractive to businesses in their decision to locate. He found out, they want affordable, willing and able employees. In his last report he said we are unattractive to most employers because our housing is too expensive and they can’t pay the kind of salaries it takes to buy a $400,000 house. Only public workers can afford our housing, apparently.
But Martha never did anything, she just fluffed and puffed and introduced Goodwin at the meetings. When she got a better offer from back east, she took it, and Dave Burkland and council sunseted the position.
Right now, the Chamber is paying Katie Simmons, who knows how much, to do the same job. There’s also the DCBA. Why we need a dedicated staffer to simply exchange e-mails and set up meetings with these two gals is beyond me.
I’m really starting to get worried about where this whole plan is taking us.