A blog about News.
|
Statement by CARB board member Lies and cover ups tarnish California Air Resources Board Strange encounter ends in arrest PG&E smartmeters WILL be tested Suspcious guy at my door last night Adoption day "magical" Closing courts wrong approach Wars never end for veterans Pet adoption day in Tehachapi Nov. 21 Indian casino OK with me August 07 September 07 October 07 November 07 December 07 January 08 February 08 March 08 April 08 May 08 June 08 July 08 August 08 September 08 October 08 November 08 December 08 January 09 February 09 March 09 April 09 May 09 June 09 July 09 August 09 September 09 October 09 November 09 
RSS 2.0    Share!
|
|
|
Tandy’s tactics not moving us forward
Here’s a tip: Don’t dare someone to dig up documents when they have nothing better to do with their time than dig up documents. Oh yeah, and make sure there’s nothing to get before you spout off, too. When City Manager Alan Tandy quit talking to me — again — a couple weeks ago, he sent an email refusing to answer questions about a directive he allegedly issued to the fire department for on-duty personnel to stay out of the public eye unless they absolutely had to come out of their stations for a real emergency. He ended the email with this: “In all future communications with me please submit a freedom of information act notice to the clerk. That is for you personally not your employer. Have a nice day.” OK. One Public Records Act request later I found a string of memos and emails between Tandy and Fire Chief Ron Fraze that show Tandy, indeed, trying very hard to strong-arm Fraze into putting his people under a burqa. He demands Fraze justify why firefighters are allowed to go to gyms (they’re evaluated on fitness and not all stations have work out space), eat in restaurants (when they’re on calls, they sometimes do have to eat); go to grocery stores (kind of necessary if he wants them to eat only in the stations behind closed doors, with the shades pulled down); and — here’s the biggie — attend public events. All if which led me to wonder what bee was buzzin’ around in Tandy’s bonnet. My conclusion: Leverage. This is a classic Tandy tactic to try and gain the upper hand in union negotiations, which have dragged on for more than a year now. He wants to jab firefighters to remind them who’s boss and, in the process, reduce their visibility to the public. Don’t believe me? Look at the timing. His memos to Fraze start back in November and specifically refer to a restaurant grand opening opening (Famous Dave’s on Rosedale Highway) as an improper use of personnel and equipment. In fairness, we also received a few letters wondering why the fire department was there. Here’s the thing, though — that happened in February 2008 and Fraze had already agreed it wasn’t a good idea and wouldn’t happen again. But Tandy didn’t bring it up for seven months. I can’t imagine him letting something stick in his craw that long before spitting it out. In the back and forth (which goes on from November to mid-March), Tandy moves from being concerned about the public perception of firefighters at public events to saying it’s a safety issue. In a Jan. 15 memo he tells Fraze, “Given the concern expressed by Fire Department staff regarding the current level of staffing within the department and the desire to have each station fully manned to meet response times and employee safety requirements it would seem paramount that Fire Department equipment and staff be available and ready to respond to life safety responses as quickly as possible.” Aha. Tandy had been trying, unsuccessfully, to get firefighters to agree to bump the lucrative three-at-50 retirement benefit to three-at-55 for new hires. They weren’t going for it, so, boom, he brought up staffing levels earlier this year, according to union president Derek Tisinger. The issue of three at 50 is pretty much the same with police officers, who’ve been without a contract for nearly two years. Talks with the police union are now at impasse. I agree that taxpayers can’t pay the freight for three-at-50 (employees can retire at 50 with 3 percent of their last year’s salary for every year of service) and still give decent wages and health benefits to employees. It’s too expensive. But Tandy’s tactics are getting us further from that goal instead of closer. Both unions have offered different ways to ease the cost of three-at-50 to the city that would show immediate savings, but Tandy told them to pound sand. Meanwhile, the council has sat idly by taking Tandy’s reports in closed session as time marches on. That’s some great governing there. When Tandy was still speaking to me (or at least emailing me) he wouldn’t answer any specific questions about the negotiations, saying he didn’t want to conduct negotiations through the media. Oh, bull puckey! Negotiations absolutely should be more public. It’s hard to see how that could make things any worse. A bill by Sen. Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, that would have required the city to publicly report the offers and counter-offers recently died a quiet death before its first hearing. That’s unfortunate. But it shouldn’t stop us, the taxpayers, from demanding some kind of action from our City Council like, I don’t know, getting a real negotiator involved. Someone a little less harsh and uncompromising. Maybe Dirty Harry’s available? Opinions expressed in this column are those of Lois Henry, not The Bakersfield Californian. Her column appears Wednesdays and Sundays. Comment at people.bakersfield.com/home/Blog/noholdsbarred, call her at 395-7373 or e-mail lhenry@bakersfield.com 17 comments from 12 users
1
posted by
PollyBaker
on Apr 18, 2009 at 09:21 PM
Tandy is more concerned with his power over city government than anything else. Keep him honest, Lois. posted by
BILLIONAIREBARTLEY
on Apr 18, 2009 at 10:19 PM
Tandy had better hope he doesn't require the services the fire department provides any time soon. Good job Lois - the worse thing for the public is when public officials behave as if they were accountable to no one for their actions and then seeks to obfuscate the situation by hindering access to public information. Targetting firefighters for going to the gym or prohibiting them from eating out while on duty - that is downright petty. I hope his days are numbered - he's an embarassment to the city. posted by
erikbako
on Apr 19, 2009 at 03:11 AM
directive he allegedly issued to the fire department for on-duty personnel to stay out of the public eye Why would he do such a thing? I enjoy seeing the men from the fire department out and about in public. It makes me so hot my heart starts going crazy and I feel I need mouth to mouth. Good Lord! Whew! Maybe they can come in that big red truck of theirs and take that big long hose and spray me down - you know what I'm talking about! Whew....I need a cold shower. This flu sucks! posted by
elinem
on Apr 19, 2009 at 07:10 AM
Good wench-slapping, Lois. Get 'em. posted by
insidegal
on Apr 19, 2009 at 10:29 AM
Hey the Council must love what this jerk is doing ... Tandy is well known for being an arrogant, abrasive kind of guy ... yet he keeps on ticking. We have what the CC wants. posted by
VirgilAnderson
on Apr 19, 2009 at 10:43 AM
"Tandy is well known for being an arrogant ..." Dude's a cigar smokking richard of a fellow who is overpaid and overrated. Is he really that smart ( intelligent ) of a guy? --virgil posted by
SITBACKANDLISTEN
on Apr 19, 2009 at 02:18 PM
I may not agree with Mr. Tandy's tactics most of the time, but I will go on the record and say that I agree with his concern. One may ask why? There should be concerns of out of station times and response times to emergency calls. The fire stations are placed strategically in specific areas and the requirements of this is to coordinate zones with city and county fire stations. This tells the fire dispatcher who to send on emergency calls. When one has a "Life Threatening Emergency" don't you want to know that they will be there quickly. I recently witnessed the Bakersfield City Fire Dept with their crew at the 24 Hr Fitness. They received a call and it took maybe 5 minutes for them to go to the fire truck and then put on their pants and boots. What type of service is this???????????????????????? If you feel that your life is precious, would you not want them their immediately. So Lois, think about what you are saying before you blow wind in the air. This could be your life or a loved ones life they are responding to save. posted by
Lingtaowoo
on Apr 19, 2009 at 02:31 PM
He is a dying breed and his way of thinking is going with him---his concerns should be for the people--all the people..not just a selected few---people-(Lois) is asking questions and we want answers reguardless IF he likes the questions or not.... posted by
SITBACKANDLISTEN
on Apr 19, 2009 at 02:53 PM
Lingtaowoo, it is a concern for the citizens of Bakersfield. Put your tongue back in your mouth and concentrate! The front of the classroom is here!
Woof! Woof! posted by
VirgilAnderson
on Apr 19, 2009 at 03:31 PM
cigar smokking in action ... http://www.youtube.com/watc... How much btown pay him, anyway? --virgil posted by
VirgilAnderson
on Apr 19, 2009 at 03:32 PM
Dude must be an invaluable resource. --virgil posted by
Shwaine
on Apr 19, 2009 at 04:01 PM
If Tandy wants them to stay in the firehouse all the time, then surely he won't mind providing the funding for an in-house gym so they can maintain fitness and for staff members who can go shopping for food and other supplies at each and every fire house. posted by
notatroll
on Apr 19, 2009 at 08:19 PM
I was wondering about something. Did Mr. Tandy at one time work for the City of Billings, Montana? I have friends that told me that he did. Years ago they also told me that they were led to believe that after he worked in Bakersfield for awhile he decided he did not like it here. They said he was trying to get a similar job somewhere/anywhere else and he could not find a city that wanted to hire him at the salary he wanted. Did anyone else ever hear anything about this or are my friends wrong? posted by
vanityfair
on Apr 19, 2009 at 08:40 PM
Your friends are not wrong. posted by
Lingtaowoo
on Apr 19, 2009 at 09:00 PM
Hey...Lois hit a nerve with this guy....good job Lois.....don't you just love free speach...some don't.... posted by
Mickdog
on Apr 19, 2009 at 10:03 PM
In response to what SITBACKANDLISTEN said. If you are concerned about the FD responding to emergency calls you should be. During the recent trial of a Firefighter who sued the city it was brought out that this particular Firefighter had reported to the Fire Chief that a Captain was ordering his crews not to respond code 3 (Lights and Sirens) to emergency calls including several where people were having Heart Attacks. After he reported these incidents he was retaliated against by the Fire Chief. That was one of the basis of his lawsuit and the City and the Fire Department Chiefs were found guilty of retaliation among other charges. Several Firefighters testified to these incidents and their is documentation from a supervisor at Hall Ambulance that this occured several times. This Captain has never been disciplined because he was a witness for the City. From what several Firefighters have said he continues to do it. Tandy knew about these incidents and aloud the retaliation to happen. This mismanagement on his part and the Fire Chief resulted in the City losing alot of money in court cost and attorney fees. Ask any City Firefighter, they are very upset about this and the public should be to. So you are right, their has been several families that had loved ones that were effected, yet Tandy has done nothing to the individuals that are responsible. posted by
Lingtaowoo
on Apr 20, 2009 at 06:48 AM
I say ~Mickdog~ about covered it...
1
 Loading Stories
Advertisement |
