Letter to the Editor, March 8

City lax in contract negotiations

Since when does an “employer” allow a third party to draw up an employment contract? Needless to say, I was dumbfounded and outraged over the employment contracts awarded our new city attorney and city manager and their outrageous salaries. They will be working for a small town in Nevada, not the federal government running our country.

That is what happens when a third party negotiates the terms instead of the city (which in this case is the employer) handling the details; it is not their money they are spending, so what do they care?

In the private sector most all new employees have to complete a probationary period, anywhere from three months up to a year before given any benefits like vacation and sick leave (if you’re lucky enough). One has to accrue vacation and sick leave over time, so what does a new employee of the city have to prove when given all his benefits up front?

All employees are expected to have transportation to and from work and are not given anything extra over and above their salary to do that, except mileage compensation when asked to do something for the company that does not fall under their usual duties. I can understand the allowance for a cellphone is you are on call 24/7, but $500 per month for a vehicle is uncalled for; that is why they are getting paid the big bucks in the first place. At that price, they can just lease an expensive luxury vehicle and use it for business and personal pleasure without anyone saying a thing.

The city is unable to maintain the landscape and pool among other things in this town for lack of funds and manpower, yet they seem to be able to come up with funds to pay these exorbitant wages. Looks like Kiernan McManus was the only smart one on City Council.

Sharon Teagarden-Brohard