Mayor cuts cop, firefighter pay to minimum wage
The mayor of Scranton will likely have to buy his own coffee cup too.
The Michael Scott style of management must be infectious.
In Scranton, Penn., home of the mythical Dunder Mifflin paper company, the mayor has reduced the pay of all city workers, including his own, to the federal minimum wage — $7.25.
Let’s hope Mayor Chris Doherty doesn’t need a firefighter or cop anytime soon. He’s not likely to receive quality service.
NPR reports Doherty made the move after city council voted to reject a proposed tax hike. Scranton, the sixth largest city in the state, had only $5,000 in the bank and owed $1 million in pay to its 400 or so employees.
There’s no indication in the article that salaries for city workers are out of control — one firefighter said his gross income was $1,500 every two weeks. Now his check is for $600 after deductions. He’s probably pawning the fire station’s Dalmation to pay his mortgage.
Employees are suing. Lackawanna County Judge Michael Barrasse issued an injunction but the mayor ordered the city issue paychecks based on the minimum wage.
A protracted legal battle is just what a city with a $16 million budget shortfall needs.
I’ve not looked closely at Scranton’s budget woes, but why didn’t the mayor do the American thing and simply declare bankruptcy?
After all, what’s good for General Motors is good for America … and maybe Scranton.
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43 comments Add your comment
Free market solution
July 10th, 2012
12:33 pm
While I would certainly rather see him fire everyone and declare bankruptcy like Stockton California did, this issue brings to light some very important issues.
75+% of american cities get by quite effectively with only volunteer fire departments. Those with paid folks are generally swimming in a sea of debt caused by overbloated salaries and pension plans negotiated by union bosses. Maybe Scranton needs to explore a more cost effective alternative.
Most importantly however, there are clearly some services that residents would be happy to pay for. No doubt fire fighting/prevention would be on a list. A service related to safety, crime prevention, crime investigation, etc. might also be on a list. Removal of waste, clean drinking water and a few others might also make the list.
Is that what Scranton is currently paying for? Do the police really keep people safe, or are they busy arresting non-violent drug offenders, gamblers, prostitutes, and other victimless criminals? Are they busy enforcing arbitrary speeding laws, red light cameras, and other sources of revenue that have dubious connections with safety? Has the police force become little more than the local gestapo with tanks, automatic weapons and the like all provided with help from the Feds?
Every service the government performs could be provided by a private group/company in a free, open, and competitive market likely in a superior manner and with a lower cost. More importantly, if they had to actually EARN the money in the marketplace, rather than stealing it through taxation, their incentive would be to serve their customers rather than treating them as government employees do (poorly at best).
The collapse and bankruptcy of governments accross the nation and around the world is a great thing for those who value freedom and liberty. We have accepted the notion that what is illegal to do as an individual is ok to do if done by government and it has cost us dearly in our freedoms and our lives. The sooner everyone is forced to create a new system of cooperative voluntary exchange instead of using the force of the government gun to get things running again, the sooner we can all benefit from the prosperity that ONLY the free market has ever been able to deliver.
JoAnn
July 10th, 2012
12:41 pm
@Michelle, How can you say that the police or firefighters are overpaid when they are out there trying to keep the citizens safe? Granted there are some bad cops but the majority of them are good and honest people trying to uphold the law. If anything they are underpaid and overworked. Why don’t you join the force if you think they are overpaid then you can get one of those big checks.
LoganvilleResident
July 10th, 2012
12:45 pm
@Free Market Solution:
You bemoan the police officers writing tickets and generating revenue in one breath. In the next breath, you want to turn it over to a private company that has to make a profit to survive. Do you not see the irony there?
A private company would likely be paid based on similar metrics… arrests, ticket-writing, etc. There would only be MORE motivation to do such things under a private company.
@CobbGOPer:
Call the Fire Department and report a shooting or other injury from any type of violence related crime… See who shows up first. The Fire Department guys aren’t coming to help you until the police get there to make sure they are safe.
Ollie
July 10th, 2012
12:52 pm
Loganville you are absolutely correct. Free Market talks out of both sides of his mouth. Chasing the almight dollar is what people like Free Market are all about. Volunteer firefighters? Yep. I can CLEARLY see this working in New York, Chicago, L.A. Miami. Unless one is living in Hootersville in a Green Acres environment, this is the ONLY situation volunteer fire depts work! Small towns.
Ollie
July 10th, 2012
12:56 pm
Furthermore, no one but people with connections, wealth and power benefit from free markets these days. The working class is dwindling because we lack the resources to play on a level field with the big dawgs who receive help and insider information from their cronie rich friends. By design to keep themselves rich and in power. Free market worked 30 years ago. Fast forward and everyday there are new reports of corrupt rich people who steal from their clients and their companies through fabricated financial reports and ponzi schemes.
Ollie
July 10th, 2012
12:58 pm
Even Mitt Robme is hiding his assets in offshore accounts in Bermuda, Cayman and Switzerland. And THIS is the guy the right thinks is going to save them and put their best interests before his own? They look at him as if his name were “Messiah” and he’s the second coming. They conveniently forget he’s Mormon and rejects the teachings of Jesus Christ.
Dwood
July 10th, 2012
1:39 pm
Puck the folice, puck the folice, puck em!
Bobby
July 10th, 2012
2:17 pm
It seems like a recipe for Police and city worker corruption. Selling drugs in uniform, robbing dealers, being bought for illegal activity. Built in excuse, I had to survive. olice officers are hard wired with agression many times anyway so I think this Mayor has no iea what he is cokking up.
Fanqueshia
July 10th, 2012
2:26 pm
The only difference between Scranton and the United States government is that the latter can create an unlimited number of dollars out of thin air. But watch out, when the ‘quantitative easing’ thing completely runs out of gas it’s gonna be ugly.
Da' BOOMER
July 10th, 2012
3:02 pm
BOOM….. Michelle! Yea that’s right! I boomed ya!