Here’s a view from the inside

Well, things have come full circle.

The people have heard from the city employee’s union president

(“Getting facts straight on the city,” Sept. 4), a city councilman

(“Where benefits really stand,” Sept. 11)and a taxpayer (“Council

doesn’t vote like residents would,” Sept. 11). How about listening to

the rank and file? I do not claim to speak for them, but I do think

that you will gain some insight as to how many city employees view

things. Perhaps you will conclude that the story you’ve heard is both

incomplete and inaccurate. Who told you the story? Decide for

yourself.

I had the opportunity to work for the city of Huntington Beach for

nearly six years. I considered it a privilege. Like most, I came from

the private sector where I worked as an electrician for 34 years. I

was employed by the city of Huntington Beach in that same capacity.

Recently, I retired.

Because of the city’s effort to balance a budget, my position, as

well as other craft positions, had been eliminated. Some people chose

retirement while others moved on to other things. Some remained with

the city to perform other jobs that were available and for which they

were qualified. While working in the private sector, I needed a

medical plan.

Like most of you, I had a family to protect in case the need

arose. My employer paid for the medical insurance that I needed. Is

this not your case also? Would you, the reader, like to be denied

what Councilman Dave Sullivan calls a “Cadillac” benefit? Some fringe

benefits, though not necessarily entitlements, are certainly

essential, or these days, even vital. Our City Council members can,

if they so wish, take advantage of that same medical plan available

to employees. Some, if not all, do.

To quote Sullivan, “Who do you suppose pays the bill for that?”

One other “Cadillac” benefit is dental insurance. Sullivan does not

refer to the dental coverage that his patients had, that “Cadillac”

fringe benefit that helped make him a very good living. If “Cadillac”

dental insurance was so fundamentally wrong, in conscience he should

have refused to accept it.

Let’s discuss another “Cadillac” employee fringe benefit called

retirement. Sullivan claims that the city pays for employee

retirement. On any city employee’s check stub, it can readily be seen

that employee retirement is a line item under “Current Earnings,”

which viewed as income is taxable. An equal amount of money is then

taken out under “Deductions.”

This happens because in the 1980s, city employees accepted a city

offer to contribute toward retirement in lieu of a salary increase.

Some of you have some sort of company funded retirement plan, such as

a pre-tax 401K plan where your employer matches your contributions to

a pre-set limit. Also, you most likely have Social Security withheld

from your pay, leading to an eventual Social Security pension.

Not only does a lifelong city employee have neither of these, the

city pension that he or she gets could be the only source of income.

If a city employee worked under the Social Security system for more

than 10 years, but less than 30, that employee will receive a Social

Security benefit, but that benefit is reduced because of the pension

from the public sector. As I see it, the benefit package that the

employees of Huntington Beach have is anything but extravagant.

Referring to it as “Cadillac” is being extravagant.

City employees are just like you. They show up for work each day,

strive to do their jobs well because they happen to care, expect no

more than a days’ pay for a day of work, and at quitting time they go

home to their families.

Just like you, while on the job they sometimes associate with and

tolerate the occasional “bad apple.” Just like you, they don’t like

it either. Just like you, they appreciate being made to feel just

that, appreciated. Just like you, they are honest and hard-working

people. Just like you, they do not like it when they are made to feel

less than their worth because of politically motivated comments that

spew forth and spread like a cancer.

* ERIC WINKELMANN is a Huntington Beach resident. To contribute to

“Sounding Off” e-mail us at hbindy@latimes.com or fax us at (714)

965-7174.