LaSala: No Pinellas layoffs for next two years

CLEARWATER -- Pinellas County Administrator Bob LaSala told employees Friday that the county won't lay off more workers in 2010 or 2011 unless an unexpected slump happens.

"We think the reduced level of service is sustainable for the a couple of years," LaSala told 24 workers at the planning department.

The county laid off 275 people in September as part of budget cuts. The county created a reserve fund to stave off deeper cuts in the next few years, although LaSala said Pinellas will need find new sources of money in a few years if growth remains as flat as expected.

But the cuts this year were meant to end piecemeal cuts, which happened before LaSala arrived a year ago. Even with property taxes expected to drop 5 to 8 percent next year, the county expects to be able to weather the lower revenue.

"It's like trying to change the tires on a car going 25 mph. It just doesn't happen," LaSala said.

LaSala has spent the month meeting with various departments to discuss the cuts.

David DeCamp, Times staff writer

Comments

[smoke-n-mirrors]

There was no reason to lay off anyone in the first place... Bob

[Team - St. Petersburg]

Mayor - Ford

Council - Corsetti - Settlegood - Kornell - Thompson - Danner

VOTE SMART

[Team - St. Petersburg]

Bob supports Kathleen Ford for Mayor.

[None of the Above]

Good Morning Bobby, How ya doin today…

Do you really believe the nonsense you spew or are you just a non-thinking drone – I’m guessing the latter…

Couldn’t sleep last night so I went Channel Surfing at midnight and stumbled on a roundtable discussion of Tax Policy in the States and finally heard someone speak intelligently to the “slump” that’s coming and understanding what the Federal Stimulus has actually done for the Country.

While there are several huge issues facing the country at the moment, the impacts of health care reform, the stimulus, etc., are either largely being ignored by our elected officials or they are waiting for the election cycle to pass…

Of the more salient points this roundtable noted are:

While the Stimulus was presented to us as going to the rebuilding of infrastructure – providing thousands of jobs in construction and their intended multiplier impacts, this has not happened to a large extent. Instead, the states and municipalities have used the funds to LESSEN job losses in the government sector – teachers, police and fire, etc.

When the stimulus has passed, and the do-nothings that we continue to elect take their heads out of the sand, the budget shortfalls that the stimulus funds have masked will once again have to be dealt with and there will be layoffs at every governmental level, not withstanding Bobby’s rosy sentiment.

Secondly and to me more importantly, someone, somewhere, is considering the legacy costs that are and will continue to come due, each and every year.

Specifically, health and retirement benefits for government workers (at ALL levels) – another reason that ANY government employee not backing serious Health Care Reform – not the crap currently being proposed (by the Dems) or not being proposed (by the Repubs) should have their heads examined as sooner, rather than later, these benefits are going to be modified – downward.

Before you jump, realize or remember that over the past few years the Federal Government has had to underwrite or outright takeover some rather large Pension Plans as the companies that offered them have either gone out of business or filed a bankruptcy reorg in order to get out from under these crushing and ever escalating legacy costs. It is not totally dissimilar to the shortfalls expected in Social Security and Medicare…

Also, recall that in the discussion relating to the implosion of the Auto Industry, these same costs were listed as one of the largest reasons for the industry’s problems…

What makes you think that Government Benefits won't come under scrutiny sooner that you might realize…

Whatever, Pinellas County Employees had better wake up to this fact. Don’t trust Bobby or the Board to protect your interests over theirs…

Get yourselves a union, not for purposes of saving what you have – it simply isn’t sustainable – but for minimizing the damage that no true unbiased representation of your needs and concerns will cause.

There are going to be more layoffs and heartache, for all of us…

What the citizens of this County should really hope for is that the elected buffoons here and nationally are actually preparing for this in a thoughtful and considerate way…

The sky isn’t falling, but it could sure use some help…

[FORD FOR MAYOR]

Vote Tuesday

[Independent]

Next year, vote out the County Commission incumbants.