Firefighters don’t deserve the outrage

To the editor:

While County Commissioner Steve Sisolak began his expose against Clark County firefighters, he claimed that dozens – perhaps hundreds – of Local 1908 members were "gaming the system." The pride and credibility of all current and former members went down the drain.

Now all these months later, after the commissioner incited negative taxpayer sentiment toward all Local 1908 members, two employees who were fired have both been reinstated by an arbitrator.

Meanwhile, with our new tarnished reputations firmly in place, many of us retirees scraped the Fire Department stickers off our cars because public outrage was directed at us. As if we should be ashamed of ourselves or something. To think that the public who once thought us heroes now sees us as a den of thieves. Members of the public have short memories.

With 9/11 so far in the rear-view mirror, it is no wonder that – in hard economic times for so many – a grandstanding politician can incite anger among the voters. The only problem: They are angry at those of us who ate a hell of a lot of smoke and lost thousands of normal sleep hours over the years – not only through deprivation, but also due to daily sleep disruptions. Try that for 30 years.

Our fiscal hero now has taxpayers clamoring for our heads in revolt. Fire Department members are not tax exempt. We, too, pay our salaries. I, however, refuse to feel guilty for all these years of legally making a decent, honest living while securing a future for my family. For those of you who didn’t? Blame yourselves.

PETER L. HASLEHURST

LAS VEGAS

Vital jobs

To the editor:

I read the June 7 letter from Jude Greco, a middle school counselor facing layoff. My daughter is an elementary school counselor, and she will be reduced to half-time status. Economizing by ridding the schools of counselors is a false economy indeed. The effects will be far-reaching.

My daughter deals with hundreds of children during the school year, many struggling with problems resulting from divorce, drugs, deaths, illnesses or parental unemployment – problems far too heavy for children to handle on their own. She has had great success teaching children coping skills, study skills and test-taking skills that will serve them for their lifetimes. She has helped build up their self-esteem so they can return to their classrooms eager and ready to learn.

Working with teachers to help troubled children creates a more effective learning environment and allows the teachers the freedom to do what they do best: teach. For the individual child, there is no price tag that can be placed upon the success he will achieve from being able to fully pursue his education by becoming empowered as an individual.

Counselors are a powerful adjunct to teachers. Working together as a team, they can create miracles. This is what is best for "the kids."

PEGGY J. COX

LAS VEGAS

Jail time

To the editor:

So crybaby Floyd Mayweather sought to serve his sentence for domestic battery under house arrest ("Mayweather seeks house arrest because of ‘inhumane conditions,’ " Tuesday Review-Journal). Mayweather has already proved to be a horrible role model and now he wants to skirt his jail sentence and show that if you have enough money there are no consequences for beating on women?

Unbelievable.

Jail isn’t supposed to be pleasant. Incarcerate me in a $100 million mansion. I promise to go willingly.

JOE MOLINARO

HENDERSON

Northtown follies

To the editor:

Steve Sebelius’ June 5 column, "North Las Vegas action plan: paging Dr. Doom?" touches upon the uncomfortable truth that the members of the North Las Vegas City Council wish to hide. The city’s financial predicament is the product of incompetent management.

The City Council fired former City Manager Kurt Fritsch in 2003 because (then) City Council members Stefanie Smith and Shari Buck wanted to get involved in management decisions. Mr. Fritsch would tell them that it was the role of the City Council to set policy and the role of the city manager to manage.

Mr. Fritsch’s successors, Greg Rose and Maryann Ustick, were clearly not up to the task. Despite the fact that declining tax revenues were easily foreseeable, city management was unable or unwilling to develop any long-term financial plans. Management also never informed the members of the City Council that the city could not afford certain high-priced capital projects such as a new City Hall or a wastewater treatment plant that would later embroil the city in litigation with Clark County.

It has been my observation that under the management of Mr. Rose and Ms. Ustick the city of North Las Vegas tried to play hardball and would not compromise in disputes with employees. Instead the city would assert ridiculous positions and fight matters, which would end up costing more. The plan developed by new City Manager Timothy Hacker, which will most likely fail in court and cost the city even more money, suggests that little has changed.

I have no reason to believe that the leaders of North Las Vegas’ public safety unions would not compromise and make the necessary concessions if city officials would sit down with the unions and negotiate in good faith.

It is important to note that the city has not filed a complaint with the state Local-Government Employee Management Relations Board alleging that any of its public safety unions have not been negotiating in good faith. This leads me to believe that the recently passed declaration of an "emergency" is simply the latest attempt by the city to avoid meaningful negotiations.

At the end of the day the responsibility for hiring a city manager falls on the City Council. It is high time that Mayor Buck and the council take responsibility for their own failure to hire competent management.

ADAM LEVINE

LAS VEGAS

The writer is a labor attorney who has represented many North Las Vegas city employees, including former City Manager Ken Fritsch.