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Suffolk
Executive Levy Chides Bargaining Units for
Requiring ‘All or Nothing’ Discussions
National Recession and Worsening Budget Crisis Leaves “No Time for No Shows”
Second March Sales Tax Check Down by Nearly 25 Percent
Hauppauge, NY – Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy said the unwillingness of seven of the county’s collective bargaining units to meet with him this afternoon on addressing Suffolk’s serious budget crisis will likely lead to the issuing of pink slips to hundreds of county employees in the near future.
The county executive began reaching out to the county’s 11 bargaining units last week to schedule meetings of small groups today and Friday, to present to them the severity of the budget shortfall and cash flow crisis, and to overview cost-saving alternatives that would avert the need for layoffs beginning April 1.
Representatives from the several unions had earlier agreed to meet with the county executive today, but backed out after the county’s 11 unions collectively decided to seek “all or none” negotiations.
Levy said he believes a series of several small group meetings -- given the level of detail and the potential for follow-up questions on issues that impact each organization separately -- would be “more conducive than one larger group.”
“This was also an attempt by the unions to make this an ‘all-or-nothing’ approach, which is untenable in negotiating and interacting with eleven separate organizations,” Levy said. The county executive noted that in negotiations on health care, which are conducted in a collective fashion as established by policy before Levy took office, becomes “unwieldy where one unit can hold hostage an agreement for all other units.
“Also,” he added, “this may be delaying tactic by one organization whose leadership is involved in re-elections. Such an all or nothing concept would doom from the start our ability to get a reasonable, equitable and the least painful settlement to the fiscal woes facing the government.”
“The loss of jobs that is certain to come, falls squarely in the laps of the union leaders who took this unrealistic all or nothing approach to bargaining. A lag payroll is a far more humane way to solve our financial problems than layoffs,” said Levy. The county executive added, “Our door remains open for constructive dialogue with the unions.
“The clock is ticking, and week after week the financial news gets worse,” Levy cautioned. “There is no time for posturing; there is no time for avoiding difficult decisions. Across this nation, workers in both the private and public sectors are being asked to make small, shared sacrifices as a way to avert or minimize the outright loss of jobs.”
According to county budget officials, the national recession, on its present course, has resulted in a projected shortfall of sales tax and property tax payments for more than $110 million over 2008 and 2009.
Earlier this week, Levy noted that the sales tax check for the first payment in March was down by more than nine percent over the same period last year – and announced today that the second March payment will be a staggering 25 percent less. Year-to-date figures show a decline of more than 9 percent, or $12 million.
Last week, Levy presented to the legislature a resolution that seeks the authority to impose layoffs beginning April 1, unless the county can gain contractual concessions to help lower costs. Those concessions, Levy said, could include a lag payroll, elimination or suspension of mid-year step increases and longevity payments, elimination or suspension of meal and clothing allowances, holiday pay deferrals, and elimination of certain non-medical benefits, such as legal and tax preparation reimbursements.
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Sales
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Tax Decline
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March 6, 2009
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$60,148,244
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March 11, 2009
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$16,707,129
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March, 2008 (first check)
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$66,161,973
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March 2008 (second check)
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$12,611,430
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Difference
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- $ 6,013,729
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- $ 4,095,699
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Percentage
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- 9.391%
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-24.5%
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Sales Tax
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Year-to-Date
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2009
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$112,836,915
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2008
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$124,449,861
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Difference
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- $ 11,612,946
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Percentage
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- 9.33%
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*Year-to-date reflects all of January, plus Electronic Filings from Feb 1-Feb 22.
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