Yonkers Layoffs

[SRS131EMTFF 471]

Yonkers should bring back neighborhood schooling. The busses that shuttle children to and from school every day that is funded by tax dollars needs to stop. Apparently it is "racist" to go to a school in your own neighborhood, so to rectify this "racism", they shuttle someone 15-20 minutes across the city to a school instead of letting the child go to a school that is within walking distance of thier home.

So what about that honors student that is forced to go to a failing inner city school? What do you tell them and their family, sorry your poor and can't afford to live in a better part of town or send your kid to private school?

[FF1 172]

So what about that honors student that is forced to go to a failing inner city school? What do you tell them and their family, sorry your poor and can't afford to live in a better part of town or send your kid to private school?

It has nothing to do with poor neighborhoods vs. wealthier neighborhoods and better schoold being located in better neighborhoods. Each school should have the same ciriculum and oppertunities for the students. There are also certain schools, such as the Charter School and Yonkers High with the I.B. program, that those honor students can be enrolled in. I just feel that there is no reason to bus a student across the city to get the same education as he could in his or her own neighborhood.

Its a total waste of tax dollars.

I don't want this discussion to go in the Yonkers Public School direction thought. I feel that is simply one way that tax dollars can be saved and jobs could be saved.

[Dinosaur 844]

So what about that honors student that is forced to go to a failing inner city school? What do you tell them and their family, sorry your poor and can't afford to live in a better part of town or send your kid to private school?

How does busing rectify that? All we are accomplishing is moving kids all over the city but that doesn't speak to the quality of the education in any of the schools.

Shouldn't all schools be sustained so none of them are "failing"? Is it a better idea to bus all the "smart" kids to one school and bus all the "dumb" kids to another? That's no

[FF1 172]

The main point of this rant is that Yonkers does not have their proirities straight. They have extremely busy fire and police departments, yet this is the first area they cut and instead of trying to find ways they can save money and spare jobs, they ask no questions and just layoff.

P.S. Where is all of this revenue from the red light cameras?

[ny10570 745]

Lieu Yonkers didn't choose to start bussing their kids. They were ordered to. That school district has so many problems, they're in far worse shape than PD and Fire.Taking from one to fund the other doesn't work in the long term.

[rayrider 94]

There really isnt any management in the dept that are not essential for running day to day operations. A commisioner, chief of personnel, chief of special ops, training, and fire prevention. We had one officer in charged of training in the past. For a 450 plus department. You think he had a workload? 99 percent of our staff are in front line positions. You cannot run any department efficiently without any support staff. If we doubled our staff positions tomorrow, it still is would not be enough. By the way, the school busing costs approx 40 million dollars a year and causes lots of unnecessary traffic along with increasing our response times.

[x129K 1,393]

Good luck Chief...to you and the guys.

[FFLieu 70]

Ray, I can only speak for myself and my statements, which incidently enough, weren't about the fd or the pd or the schools or anything else other than how the City government is being run, and the components thereof.

While I can see that you're on the job, I surely hope that you come out unscathed from any proposed cuts. Like I've said, cutting the guys who do the job doesn't solve the underlying problem. It didn't work in NYC, it didn't work in Indianapolis, and it won't work in Yonkers.

[CBX4627 114]

Been a Yonkers resident for over 10 years and now that i'm married and have a 9 month old son, I gotta say that the Yonkers bussing situation is a big bunch of B.S. Besides the high taxes, I gotta pay for private school, cause my son is NOT going to Roosevelt H.S. Didn't the traitor Spano mention something about ending the bussing?

[61MACKBR1 222]

Yonkers, be prepared to hear the same thing that was proposed a few years ago. Station 8 will CLOSE and Engine 308 will cease to exist. YFD will move Squad 11 to Station 7 and then proceed to CLOSE Station 11. Ladder 70 will cease to exist and YFD will move Tower Ladder 75 to Station 14 to replace it (vs. the better alternative of moving TL 75 to the propoposed to be closed Station 11)

Wake up Yonkers, because the administration will more than likely propose these cuts within the YFD to close the budget gap. Add to this, you will most likely hear that the Sanitation Department will again propose a 1 day a week collecetion schedule. Then you will have the same slow down and piles of garbage seen on the sidewalks this summer and the city will smell like a sewer. You will also probably again watch the DPW Union heads, while attending a public city haul meeting, treating women reporters covering that meeting, like they were street walkers on the lower west side of Manhattan.

Police Cuts will now allow the gangs of Yonkers to have free reign on the streets of Yonkers. Willow Avenue will again be "GANG CENTRAL" for them to have as they like.

Yonkers, the Emerald Citiy !!!

[Tranz426 22]

The question is... is this really about layoffs or contract negotiations? Also what happened to the safer grant that was awarded?

[YogruntNy 21]

The question is... is this really about layoffs or contract negotiations? Also what happened to the safer grant that was awarded?

Personally,I feel its about political scamming. Make Albany think you're broke, and give me more money. BUT, at the same time, I feel its more about layoffs than negotiations. Spano clearly doesnt seem to be interested in the better future of both the Yonkers PD and FD. Any negotiations that come to the table more than likely wont benefit either agency, but just take and give enough to maintain what they have. In terms of the grant, thats an excellent question. I know the FD has the SAFER grant, and I was under the impression the PD also has one under similar terms. What are the unions doing about making this public? Are they addressing other politicians and/or FEDS of their current situation? Are they making the current Yonkers administration aware of terms and conditions? These questions may have already been answered, but I'm unaware of any of them (I'm simply not privy to it). This whole new administration is a little sketchy to me...

[TheNewLadder32 49]

People are wondering didnt they pay there taxes, of course you did you really paid the politicians its a scam as said before. Its kind of like the old days they tell you one thing you believe your getting what you pay for but in return its nothing kind of like a Bernie Madoff taking peoples hard earned money and using it for there personal needs. When what we really need if Fire and Police and then theres the certain people who blame us for using tax dollars for worthless things like training, apparatus, equipment, and much more because supposebly we do nothing but whats expected of us when in return its not true and its actually what we need. Will we ever have truthful politicians or will this world always be a corupt place like the past 100 years.

[Res1cueLT 20]

Yonkers, be prepared to hear the same thing that was proposed a few years ago. Station 8 will CLOSE and Engine 308 will cease to exist. YFD will move Squad 11 to Station 7 and then proceed to CLOSE Station 11. Ladder 70 will cease to exist and YFD will move Tower Ladder 75 to Station 14 to replace it (vs. the better alternative of moving TL 75 to the propoposed to be closed Station 11)

Wake up Yonkers, because the administration will more than likely propose these cuts within the YFD to close the budget gap. Add to this, you will most likely hear that the Sanitation Department will again propose a 1 day a week collecetion schedule. Then you will have the same slow down and piles of garbage seen on the sidewalks this summer and the city will smell like a sewer. You will also probably again watch the DPW Union heads, while attending a public city haul meeting, treating women reporters covering that meeting, like they were street walkers on the lower west side of Manhattan.

Police Cuts will now allow the gangs of Yonkers to have free reign on the streets of Yonkers. Willow Avenue will again be "GANG CENTRAL" for them to have as they like.

Yonkers, the Emerald Citiy !!!

There is NO Willow Ave in Yonkers

[Tranz426 22]

Personally,I feel its about political scamming. Make Albany think you're broke, and give me more money. BUT, at the same time, I feel its more about layoffs than negotiations. Spano clearly doesnt seem to be interested in the better future of both the Yonkers PD and FD. Any negotiations that come to the table more than likely wont benefit either agency, but just take and give enough to maintain what they have. In terms of the grant, thats an excellent question. I know the FD has the SAFER grant, and I was under the impression the PD also has one under similar terms. What are the unions doing about making this public? Are they addressing other politicians and/or FEDS of their current situation? Are they making the current Yonkers administration aware of terms and conditions? These questions may have already been answered, but I'm unaware of any of them (I'm simply not privy to it). This whole new administration is a little sketchy to me...

I believe its more about contract talks due to the Triborough Amendment, which forces municipalities to follow the expired contracts untill a new contract is in place. The municipalities can't afford to follow the old contract guidelines right now untill the finacial problems due to the previous administrations is fixed. The problem unions face, is that now it seems that most of the politicians are all on the same page (from albany down), specificaly, due to a strong governor who has most people on board with his plans. So your not seeing a divided house like we recently saw and is starting to accomplish the, thought to be, impossible with the unions; such as changing the pension system. The next thing they are eyeing is to suspend the Triborough Amendment, which if done the unions would lose all leverage to getting a new contract. In defense of the unions, its not fair that this laws and deals get put in place to protect and budget unions, and then at the failure of bad politicians, then have to be changed to solve the problem; however at the end of the day the politicians are the ones calling the shots, siging the checks, and can change the game as you go along, (pension, possible triborough amendment) so you have to be carefull otherwise if you go to far they would burn you. With new politicians in place who for the most part seem to be doing the right thing, its best for the unions to come to the table agree to something fair to both sides and give them a shot to right this ship and put all this annual budget drama in the rearview mirror, especially before you lose more bargining ground. Its not fair when the politicians get to change the rules as you go along, but thats the game!

On a side note: I believe, this is also the problem you face when you have term limits, because what happens is, when in office, most politicians worry about how they are setting themselves up for when they are term limited out; instead of doing what is right for the cities. Just look at the amicone administration, giving all the commecial tax breaks to these developments because he and his cronies are invested in the properties one way or another and will finacially benefit from it. Instead of getting the proper due taxes and avoided all this budget short falls The argument people have about getting rid of term limits, is that then you can get them out of office. I disagree, if a politician is driving a city off a cliff then vote him out, if he is doing good for the city then keep him in. Thats what election day is all about. Alternatively, the current politicians should be writing new laws that hold old administrations accountable and be able to go after there assets to fix their failure, instead of changing the rules with unions. Right now the old administrations say opps sorry(if even that) and still have all their financial benefits, and then they have no choice but to go after the workforce to fix it.

[Bnechis 3,961]

The argument people have about getting rid of term limits, is that then you can get them out of office. I disagree, if a politician is driving a city off a cliff then vote him out, if he is doing good for the city then keep him in. Thats what election day is all about.

I disagree. Most people do not know if they are being driven off a cliff. They vote right down the line, Dem, Rep or other. On a larger scale how do you get rid of the problems in Albany or Washington? The politician who keeps screwing the state or the country will keep getting reelected as long as his/her district is happy with him/her. Consider Speaker Silver, all he needs to do is keep lower Manhattan happy and the rest of the state has no say.

[Tranz426 22]

I disagree. Most people do not know if they are being driven off a cliff. They vote right down the line, Dem, Rep or other. On a larger scale how do you get rid of the problems in Albany or Washington? The politician who keeps screwing the state or the country will keep getting reelected as long as his/her district is happy with him/her. Consider Speaker Silver, all he needs to do is keep lower Manhattan happy and the rest of the state has no say.

I'm more or less talking about just cities and mayor term limits. Problems on the state and federal level are a whole different area. The idea is for a city to be self sufficient and not have to always rely on the state or feds to always bail them out. With a properly budgeted city they should be able to pay for themselves. The old way of just raise the taxes to fill in the gap ran out with the tax cap. As far as people not knowing if they are being driven off a cliff, the person who can't see that there is a budget crisis every year and something is always be cut or threatened (police, fire, education, dwp), then they really can't complain about when their taxes are being raised or services cut. (Its gotten so bad that even News 12 has there annual budget crisis little music jingle for years now) Otherwise for those who do acknowledge would vote them out of office rather then putting the same person back in, regardless of the political party. The average citizen don't go by political party usually just go by who they feel would do the best. With term limits for city mayors, it just keeps the same game going, do a pretty good job your first term to get re-elected and set yourself up the second leaving the city in a finanial mess. It raises a good question though, Do the people that are completly unaware when they are being driven off a cliff outway the number of people who do know? If so, thats a scary thought!

[Dinosaur 844]

I believe its more about contract talks due to the Triborough Amendment, which forces municipalities to follow the expired contracts untill a new contract is in place. The municipalities can't afford to follow the old contract guidelines right now untill the finacial problems due to the previous administrations is fixed. The problem unions face, is that now it seems that most of the politicians are all on the same page (from albany down), specificaly, due to a strong governor who has most people on board with his plans. So your not seeing a divided house like we recently saw and is starting to accomplish the, thought to be, impossible with the unions; such as changing the pension system. The next thing they are eyeing is to suspend the Triborough Amendment, which if done the unions would lose all leverage to getting a new contract. In defense of the unions, its not fair that this laws and deals get put in place to protect and budget unions, and then at the failure of bad politicians, then have to be changed to solve the problem; however at the end of the day the politicians are the ones calling the shots, siging the checks, and can change the game as you go along, (pension, possible triborough amendment) so you have to be carefull otherwise if you go to far they would burn you. With new politicians in place who for the most part seem to be doing the right thing, its best for the unions to come to the table agree to something fair to both sides and give them a shot to right this ship and put all this annual budget drama in the rearview mirror, especially before you lose more bargining ground. Its not fair when the politicians get to change the rules as you go along, but thats the game!

What should happen when contract expires? Should all the terms of the contract go out the window? That forces both sides to start from scratch each and every time. My old job never negotiated in good faith and allowed contracts to expire (not just with my union but with all of the unions) and then waited it out - either for arbitration or another budget year. In the meantime they banked the money for raises and benefits and kept the interest. Hmmm...

If you think step increases and longevity (for those that still have it) are what's breaking the bank you're way off base. If you think that the financial problems in our local governments can be fixed in this lifetime without a revolution you're way off base.

If the Triborough Amendment is repealed, then so should be the Taylor Law that prohibits police and fire from striking. Maybe the threat of a police or fire strike would keep the political hacks at the negotiating table.

You seem to be flip-flopping from one side to the other in your post.

They're killing any incentive at all to enter police or fire jobs. They want us to take pay cuts, contribute more to our pensions and healthcare, and work until we're older and older and then receive less in pension benefits than someone in one of the earlier tiers. I'm all for negotiating reasonable contracts but if Cuomo thinks forcing a cop or firefighter to work untilt they're 62 is going to save any money he's out of his mind. More line of duty injuries and deaths as this workforce ages will negate any savings.

It sucks and there's no relief in sight. We're all painted to be selfish, greedy, do-nothing pigs gorging ourselves at the public trough. Sure there are some ridiculous examples of pension padding but by and large the pension program works.

[Guest truck12345]

No mention in cutting NYS generous social service system were the come from all over the country and the world to get to get a free ride forever,

[Tranz426 22]

Anyone have any updates on how the negotiations are going between the departments and city?

[JOB114 41]

Why does the City and the press automatically come after our contracts and say they need to be re-negotiated? Let's talk real money and discuss the deals made with developers that continually use high priced attorneys to get the best deal for themselves. No mention of re-negotiating these contracts because those same high priced attorneys would tie the City in knots in a court of law, and the City would eventually lose. When a union threatens the same we are called greedy but when a developer does it, they are just using good business sense. Amicone gave this City away to developers and got squat in return. Yes we get some sales tax but there was no benefit to the City's infrastructure. The people employed are mainly from the Bronx and Yonkers taxpayers get the short end again. Spano should assemble a commission to look into how Yonkers was raped under the previous admin and if they can't file criminal charges then use a publicity campaign to expose the one sided benefits that developers got and what the taxpayer paid. Not really expecting any of these cowards to do anything even close though. Government is no longer about serving people, it is self serving.

[nycmedic 65]

Dont forget government workers are part of the self serving government.

[JOB114 41]

I work for the government, I don't get to set the rules. Politicians do that and unions negotiate with those politicians. We have received 0% pay increase over the last 4 years, including these year's proposal, and taxes will have been raised 26% in those same 4 years. Where is the money going, obviously not to the people doing the work but to special pet projects and welfare. So just to be clear we are not the ones that are self serving, we provide a valuable public service. As NYC Medic, I would have thought you would know the difference.

[Guest truck12345]

Politicans got pay increase welfare got raise st workers gave back lost money Police and Fire still giving money benies and manpower

[YogruntNy 21]

Anyone have any updates on how the negotiations are going between the departments and city?

Word I've been hearing is...not good. Unions have presented valid cases with the proof to back it up. City simply doesnt care to hear it.

I'm hoping for the best for those guys! They are phenomenal cops and firemen, and deserve to be treated better than this.

[helicopper 1,050]

Word I've been hearing is...not good. Unions have presented valid cases with the proof to back it up. City simply doesnt care to hear it.

I'm hoping for the best for those guys! They are phenomenal cops and firemen, and deserve to be treated better than this.

This is not unique to Yonkers. I've heard about a number of communities that don't want to negotiate at all. They simply want concessions and give-backs.

[Tranz426 22]

Its sad that they always use the police and fire as leverage just because it pierces the heart of the residents. I guess this is the politicians way of dealing with the tax cap.

[YogruntNy 21]

I'm a little surprised this hasnt already been mentioned, so I'm hoping I'm not breaking any "site rules" by posting this. Its come to my attention through some friends in the YFD, that there will be a budget meeting at city hall's city council chamber in regards to YFDs budget on Monday, the 21st. I dont have specific times. I would assume its open to the public and would recommend any supporters, especially Yonkers residents to attend and show your stance against these cuts and support our local firefighters.

I have not received any word if the YPD is also have a meeting in regards to their cuts. Anyone have word on that?

Also, on the 29th, there will a city council budget meeting in regards to the city's budget as a whole, where people will have a chance to speak out. Once again, Yonkers residents...this is our chance to voice some opposition (whether its ignored or not is an entirely different matter)!

[gamewell45 258]

If the Triborough Amendment is repealed, then so should be the Taylor Law that prohibits police and fire from striking. Maybe the threat of a police or fire strike would keep the political hacks at the negotiating table.

I highly doubt if you'll ever see the Taylor Law repealed; its a safety valve for the public's safety because a legal strike would have horrific consequenses for the public in general.

Having spent 19 weeks on strike one year I can tell you it gets old pretty quick once your savings run out and the thought of being permanently replaced by striking (scabs) workers only adds to the stress of being on strike. Many of us in the private sector who are union would love to have binding arbitration as opposed to having the right to strike.

[The Axe 8]

Way to go Mike Spano! Less police, less Firefighters and DPW workers! Gang violence is out of controll, The fire department is already short handed and now the garbage is going to pyle up. No doubt your a true Democrat!!