Replay: Stop giving away the (City) farm to labor unions

This article was originally written 6/7/06 and it needs a replay in view of the recent round of raises provided to city workers by their loving council members, briefly mentioned here 8/22/07

The article on giving away the city farm was written before the wonderful "stabilizing" of the city budget (mentioned here 8/18/07) under the title "When talking about the city budget, quote my essay first."

and on 7/8/07 under the title "Riding to the hospital with your city employees: Bend over Taxpayer ..."

All of this fits together and goes back to the failure of city officials to safeguard public money in good financial times so that future grass-mowing crises at the cemetery can be avoided.

Anyway, here it is:

Thanks to inept negotiating for the City of Newark, employee union contracts do not allow part-time workers or volunteers to mow grass in the cemetery.

Though it would take some time-consuming digging to find out who has been (and maybe still is) giving away the (City) farm, that doesn't mean citizens won't recognize that it has been given away. One can only hope that taxpayers will take an interest in public-employee labor contracts of the future and demand information about the people and the process.

Council members and administrators from God knows how long ago have signed into these ridiculous labor contracts with city employes for God knows what reasons. It would be interesting to know who and why and under whose watch these things were happening.

That the farm has been given away to labor unions is obvious when firemen can make more than the mayor and the administration can't use employees efficiently. Labor contracts are among the roadblocks to providing city services in a cost-effective manner. The mayor hinted at this in public statements and he needs to keep talking.

Further, the mayor and council members need to start reclaiming ground lost to skillful union negotiators while the public slumbered thanks to an inattentive press. Unions running rampant over an anesthetized citizenry does not mean that it is fair or must be permanent.

As for Cedar Hill Cemetery, I walk there nearly every day and though it's not getting mowed as frequently as in the past, it isn't bad; surely not as bad as is being painted by Gannett's letters' column.

But even if it were that bad, it's the fault of a union contract and taxpayers deserve a change in that agreement - one that would enable city administrators to maintain the cemetery with whatever employees or volunteers are available.