Taxpayers coming up empty in arbitration cases

To the editor:

Recent rulings by arbitrators in disputes involving public employee unions and local governments have been a disaster for taxpayers. Score: Unions 3-0 over taxpayers.

In the case of the Clark County School District vs. the Clark County Education Association, the arbitrator awarded the union members pay raises that are clearly unsustainable. The arbitration ruling has led to teacher layoffs, which is the worst-case scenario.

The two arbitration findings on behalf of the firefighter union ruled that alleged sick leave abusers – including the battalion chief who arranged the sick day schedules – are to be reinstated with full back pay and benefits. One of the plaintiffs is now suing the county to try to get even more out of the taxpayers’ hide.

As outsiders, we know little of what actually was transpiring in the sick-pay claims. But even though only two firefighters were chastised – and now reinstated – it turns out that since the exposure of "sick time scheduling" the rate of sick claims has dropped dramatically. Does that mean our firefighters are a lot healthier now?

Arbitration, which is built into the public employee union contracts, looks like a bad deal for taxpayers. That raises questions about the arbitrators. Who determines arbitrators can be neutral? Who selects the arbitrators, and are they competent?

In some of these recent arbitration cases, the offenders should have been fired outright – which is what would happen in the private sector. But, alas, our public employees are special, and arbitration is one of the many special deals they have, including wages and benefits better than those of the taxpayers paying for them.

All of these problems point out that public employee unions should not exist. These unions came to life in 1959 in Wisconsin. But taxpayers in Wisconsin recently showed their discontent by resisting an effort to recall Gov. Scott Walker, who challenged the unions. In that nominally Democratic state, the voters put their Republican governor back to work. The unions hate Gov. Walker because he got a change made so the state no longer automatically collects union dues from employees. Membership in the union has subsequently dropped 55 percent and continues to decline.

In Nevada, we cannot afford the pensions, salaries and other benefits of many of our public employees. Does Nevada have any politicians who will confront this issue? Where is Diogenes when you need him?

Lee Fulton

Richard N. Fulton

Henderson