Rick Badie / My Opinion

By BW

January 6, 2009 2:50 PM | Link to this

A company, no, a community, depends if they’re building a stadium without public input or thinking at a resort on the mount.

My wifes company asked all employee’s to take a two dollar an hour cut to help the company pass some rough times, they did. Later that year all the managers received holiday bonuses, yet the employee’s pay didn’t return to the old levels? Now the company has a union, first contract returned pay to former levels and included raises. I call it the ‘Fool me once’ rule.

Now a community with an open government it may be worth it, if it can keep schools and community services up to the same levels as before without lay-offs. Otherwise you end up like Atlanta, either raise taxes or put residents in danger.

By nana

January 6, 2009 3:28 PM | Link to this

I think it’s a good idea in the private sector. Especially if it can keep the person(s) from losing their jobs. I would almost bet anything that if anyone whose been laid off in the last several months had been given this choice they would have taken it. Not sure about the government side….have to think on that one.

By Bubba

January 6, 2009 3:41 PM | Link to this

I had to give back my raise this year, the whole company did. Times are hard, we squeezed by this year by offering early retirement negating the need for layoffs. For now. 2% seemed like a small sacrifice in exchange for continued employment.

Yes, I might get screwed out of the deal. The haves do like to stick it to the have-nots whenever they can, don’t they? The company might also keep its word and reinstate the raises when times are better. I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt.

By Governmental Preacher

January 6, 2009 5:29 PM | Link to this

Bubba’s comment proves that the world IS divided between the haves and the half-wits.

Who put the bomp in the bomp-she-bomp-she-bomp?

If you can answer that question, Bubba, then I will take back this comment. You have one hour.

By nana

January 6, 2009 5:53 PM | Link to this

huh?

By Cindy

January 6, 2009 8:10 PM | Link to this

I’m foregoing my raise this year and next year, bare minimum. As well as approximately 12 out of the past 19 years. When budgets are tight, we take the hit before anyone else who is affected by the budget. It gets discouraging but then I have to take a look at myself and stop being selfish. I do still have a full time job and for that, I am truly fortunate and thankful.

By Terrence

January 6, 2009 8:43 PM | Link to this

I’ve told my employer that if he needs to cut costs then cut my hours. I’d rather take a 20% cut in hours and leave the extra time for me to get a second job.

I wish Oprah would give her money to school systems that actually need the assistance rather than cash cows like Clark.

By Class of '98

January 6, 2009 8:47 PM | Link to this

Yes, of course it should be considered. We learn as children not to cut off our noses to spite our faces.

But executive/managerial bonuses should be out of the question after that, needless to say.

By Michael H. Smith

January 6, 2009 9:13 PM | Link to this

Put your money on businesses going out of business. A lot of small mom n’ pop retailers and a few big names as well. Empty strip-malls could be a reality.

While the talking heads on the cable news networks go on and on about saving Wall Street, the Banking sector and the Big 3 so-called American automakers occasionally a small squeak in the background seems to work a word into the conversation edgewise on where the real economic bailout, or more to the point, bail-in focus should be centered: Jobs baby, jobs!

Hard to sell cars and houses to unemployed people; not much prospect they’ll get bank loans either. So take it for what it is worth: If you want to save the fat cats and the big boys then little man at the bottom has to get up first. All we’ve been given so far is reverse economic engineering.

No question that taking a pay cut verses losing a job including all your pay and any benefits is a non-starter. The problem is that things like leadership and statesmanship have all been erased from the vocabularies of corporate CEOs’, Management, and the Politicians. While rank and file workers in the private sector and government sector are being told hours will be cut, layoffs will be made and in some case salaries will be rolled back. How many CEOs’, how many in management and how many in elective office are willing stepping up to the plate so to speak, to cut their pay and benefits BEFORE they make sacrificial demands of others?

Congress is due to receive a pay raise unless they choose to decline it. Will members of Congress forgo their pay raise?

Our county is cutting everywhere possible to balance the budget. Has the Chairman and county management made any sacrifices or taken any pay cuts?

What is sauce for we geese is sauce for those ganders: That is what I think Mr. Badie.

BTW, keep an eye out for a lot of bad tax laws being written and passed: Like the fat tax, ridiculous tax increases on tobacco and alcohol, taxes on downloading music from the internet. We might even see something as ludicrous as a window tax. (Something the Mexican government imposed on the Mexican people once upon a historic time.)

Kind of funny thinking back on that blog about “your property is worth more than you think” now that as we know property values gone down. But I’ll bet the windows in our houses have all increased drastically since then?

By Roger

January 6, 2009 9:24 PM | Link to this

You get paid what you’re worth, period. If you think you’re worth 2% less than what you’re making now, take the cut. If you think you’re underpaid, than you should be able to go and find someone willing to pay you what you want. If not, than that’s what your worth. So if these teachers consider themselved overpaid, go for it and let them pay you less. If you lose your job because of it, don’t worry.. you can get it somewhere else, right?

By TQ

January 6, 2009 10:24 PM | Link to this

Teachers were fast-tracked to making significantly more money than they were a decade ago. Sonny Perdue wanted to make a name for himself and that was his golden goose. Too bad he spent years shafting state govt employees to the point that it now takes half their salary to pay for their benefits.

In addition to that, now the state employees get no raise, insurance costs increase, public safety money is slashed, among numerous other things while the state forks out the big bucks to keep Peach Care in place, grants to non-essential feel-good causes, and other bull-sh1t.

It’s a crazy slap in the face, that’s what it is. What does Sonny care? He’s on his way out. Good riddance.

It’s commonly the worker bee’s who have to sacrifice what they have, in an attempt to fix what the fat cats mess up.

By BW

January 6, 2009 10:30 PM | Link to this

MHS, the state, nor the feds, can ever beat Gwinnetts Rain Tax.

Roger, you are kidding, are you not? That idea died in the 20’s, when you have a work force making a product they can’t afford, whose going to buy it?

By Scarlett

January 6, 2009 10:57 PM | Link to this

Speaking of Sonny Perdue, did you hear one of the ways this evil little man tried to rein in spending in GA? Retired teachers, librarians, principals, currently get a 3% COLA raise every 6 months. Perdue proposed that ZERO raises would be approved for retired educators unless the raises were approved unanimously by the board. The plan was defeated big time, but you gotta wonder about Perdue’s ethics on this one! That’s fine, these are HARD times for everyone. Worst case scenerio vote on whether teachers retiring in 2009 or after might have different COLA rules. I personally have many members in my family in the education profession……many teachers, an assistant superintendent. One of my uncles taught school for 51 years and after 40 years you DON’T INCREASE YOUR RETIREMENT 1 penny by continuing to teach. I think it’s rotten to change the rules AFTER the fact. Would you want to live with it on your conscience that you took COLA funds from an 89 year old widow, who never had children, using her Teacher Retirement money to pay for a nursing home?

By Scarlett

January 6, 2009 11:15 PM | Link to this

Fayette County School Board, you should be ashamed of yourselves! Are you familiar with the term Indian giver? THIS IS SIMPLY A POLITICAL ATTENTION GETTING PLOY, to blame teachers if the county has a budget shortfall. If you don’t have enough money don’t OFFER teachers a pay raise, they can suck it up like everyone else. DeKalb has offered teachers 0% and 1% pay raises in the past and DeKalb has already laid off some educators, but not classroom teachers this year. Of course, can you imagine ANY organization as large as the Fayette County government, or even the Fayette County school system to get EVERY SINGLE PERSON to agree on anything, let alone turning down money that their family probably needs badly. Tell teachers & county personnel that times are hard, there are no funds so there will be no raises because they don’t want to have to disribute pink slips in 2009, no raises for board members, superintendents, principals, anyone involved in the school system. Unfortunately this could happen to cops & firefighters too and like most everyone else, they’d be disappointed but all the above people would feel fortunate that they had job security. But don’t write them a check or offer them a raise and then decide you can’t balance the budget if they don’t “give back” what you’ve already given them. BTW we do not have Teacher unions in GA……..and we don’t need them! Teachers that are currently in the work force will get a raise another year & can advancement before retirement. But those elderly teachers on a fixed income should not get less in their retirement check.

By Michael H. Smith

January 6, 2009 11:32 PM | Link to this

Not so sure about that BW. How long did the Fed have an additional tax on the phone service to help pay for the Spanish-American War?

Now we’re looking at a new carbon tax? Heaven forbid the next Congress hears that cows emit methane, which is far more damaging to the earth’s atmosphere than carbon dioxide. We’ll have a Cow Tax before you know it or an extra dollar a pound tax on beef products just to clean up after cow farts?

Ah just as well, I plan to eat a lot more fish anyway now that I found that Publix sell fish from America and not all from China. You know, it’s that melamine… Just doesn’t agree we me for some reason. Kind of like all that salmonella from Mexico. Have to watch the labels on the tomatoes and peppers too. Can’t wait to see the free traders impose an extra tax for buying American products. They’ll probably call it a labeling excise tax.

Anyway, I figure we’ll all be working for less and our governments will be taking more. I don’t think I’ll have to ask pretty please for any of this to happen.

By Michael Smith, your posts make no sense

January 6, 2009 11:34 PM | Link to this

Yes, I would decline a raise or return a raise to my employer for the good of the organization. I have more invested in my occupation/career and so long as my family is taken care of I would be willing to forgo (sp?) a raise during difficult times.

By Michael H. Smith

January 7, 2009 12:04 AM | Link to this

(sp?) whatever that means?

You seemed to have made good sense out of what I said.

I have more invested in my occupation/career and so long as my family is taken care of I would be willing to forgo (sp?) a raise during difficult times.

So have I. Because it is a non-starter not to give up or invest back into a company, especially when times are difficult and it comes down to having a reduced paycheck or having no pay check at all.

My other point was that far too often these days it is those on the low end of the pay scale who are expected to make the greatest income concessions, while those at the top give up very little income in reality.

But you are more than welcome to disagree with me. Just as I will remember and disagree with those in public office that could have been leaders and statesmen by setting an example in making financial sacrifices before laying someone off from a job.

By LT5000

January 7, 2009 10:35 AM | Link to this

Blubbering Badie feels sorry for the poor teachers.

You know the ones don’t work 12 months a year, get guaranteed raises and collect a sweet pension.

Anybody else running our of Kleenex?

For true justice in a capitalist society Badie would return his paychecks from the last 3 years with interest.

He certainly doesn’t earn them posting this kind of bilge.

Maybe he could write a nice article about Gwinnett fast tracking deportations. That would actually be something interesting to read.

LT5000

By Badie

January 7, 2009 11:38 AM | Link to this

LT’s back. Yawn.

By LT5000

January 7, 2009 1:20 PM | Link to this

Hey Fat Boy Badie.

Under your pic it states: Rick Badie writes about people, places and issues in Gwinnett County

I don’t see a thing in this article about Gwinnett County.

Surely you could have put down the triple Whopper and picked up the AJC to read about the fast track deportations occurring and the GCDC.

Instead, you dug out another handful of fries and looked at other counties for a non-story.

Heaven forbid you turn over a new leave for 2009 and act like a real journalist.

Keep up the poor work, we readers expect nothing less from you.

LT5000

By Badie

January 7, 2009 1:22 PM | Link to this

LT: Double yawn.

By Yawn

January 7, 2009 2:03 PM | Link to this

So LT actually puts down his copy of Mein Kampf long enough to read something else?

By James

January 7, 2009 3:54 PM | Link to this

Depends on how well I was treated by the boss/company. If they were nice, and asked nicely, and I believed that my boss would, then yeah I would very likely do the same out of company loyalty.

However, if I had a boss that treated me like crap and/or got the impression that the management had no intentions of doing this, then I would take the money and run.

By CommunistAJC

January 7, 2009 4:25 PM | Link to this

Simple answer: NO! I would also look for a new job.

By jimmy

January 7, 2009 6:34 PM | Link to this

Hey Rick -

You missed the fact that our Gwinnett Commissioners got a BIG raise Jan. 1.

Why don’t we ask them to give it back?

I mean, between the trash, the stadium and everything else they’ve done, they don’t deserve it. Especially, when they are laying off employees.

Shame on them.

By LT5000

January 7, 2009 9:18 PM | Link to this

Jimmy.

You have obviously confused Blubbering Badie with a real journalist.

He prefers to write moronic error filled drivel, not real news stories.

LT5000

By AJCReader

January 8, 2009 8:50 AM | Link to this

No disrespect intended, Mr. Badie, but you must admit your articles could use some improvement.

By Ted

January 8, 2009 11:45 AM | Link to this

Interestingly after reading these many post it appears budgets should get looked at on a more global level. Global meaning state look. Seems to me the people asking for the cuts need to look upstream and ask their reporting structure to take the same cut. Or maybe it might make more sense to start with Gov. Purde and work down from there. This is my favorite part, ask the whole state to unanamously accept a budget cut. Maybe there should be consideration in selling the gold off the state capitol building…….

By Cindy

January 8, 2009 12:22 PM | Link to this

Before the gold is sold, i’d just like to see all the bullcrap stuff stop getting the funding. People who CAN work SHOULD. If they’d get their hands out of OUR pockets long enough, maybe they could grip an ink pen and fill out a job app.

By Michael H. Smith

January 8, 2009 12:29 PM | Link to this

President Elect Obama gave a major economic speech moments ago on his stimulus package. How many in our government will say, take my earmark please?

So far I haven’t heard of Congress giving up their scheduled pay raises and I’m not holding my breath waiting on our County Chairman and Commissioners forgoing their pay raises either. With this group of folks we have so-called representing us, who are more than glad to ask many of us to do with less income for the greater good, while they continue to do with more to serve the greater self-interests of greed, I’d have to say that our new soon to be President is going to have one huge task in front of him protecting the public purse from all of those lined-up to feed at the public trough.

Once I had an employer who told me, I will never ask you to do anything that I will not do myself.

Words our politicians should consider. We may not agree on anything, however, few among any of us will look down on a man or woman that stands in front of their words rather than hiding behind them.

May God strengthen Mr. Obama to stand firmly against earmarks, special interests and all those lined-up waiting to feed at the public trough.

By David S

January 8, 2009 12:32 PM | Link to this

Let’s see. The teachers do not compete in the free market for compensation that is voluntarily paid in return for services rendered. Their pay is stolen from the taxpayers, many of whom do not benefit at all from the government school system. There is no value basis for the money they are paid as compensation for there are no true “customers” of their service.

Their pay is the product of theft so by what justification do they have to keep any of it? Don’t get me wrong, this would apply to every government employee.

Here’s a better solution. Get rid of the government schools, force parents to pay for their own kids education, let teachers work for private institutions that get paid by voluntary exchange in response to services rendered and then all of the children and taxpayers will be better off.

If companies that received their compensation through voluntary means, not theft, are having to cut back, it only seems appropriate that the government do the same.

By BW

January 8, 2009 1:04 PM | Link to this

One thing I found missing in his speech is more regulation of Wall Street? They carry, along with banks, most of the responsibity for the mess we’re in. Now they’re using “The Peoples” money without any oversight, the loan to the Big Three has a government assigned watch dog.

I hope this will be corrected in his stimulus package.

By me2

January 8, 2009 2:10 PM | Link to this

I agree with AJCreader, Mr. Badie. You have gotten lazy over the past year. All you do is quote another reporters column. You’re losing your voice

By fitzgerald

January 8, 2009 2:54 PM | Link to this

No big deal asking teachers to return their raises. Not one thing about eliminating athletics that would save a ton of money. Don’t even consider cutting the sacred cow.

By BW

January 8, 2009 3:04 PM | Link to this

Interesting fact, on this day in history: 1835 - The United States national debt is 0 for the only time.

By GaLiberal

January 8, 2009 6:21 PM | Link to this

fitzgerald said: No big deal asking teachers to return their raises. Not one thing about eliminating athletics that would save a ton of money. Don’t even consider cutting the sacred cow.

Hey, fitzy. What planet have you been on lately? Probably one without any air since it appears you are brain dead. Athletics are NOT funded by the school or the county. It is entirely funded by the booster clubs. The booster clubs get their money from the players parents, running concessions, and other fundraisers. So cutting athletics would do nothing since they there is NOTHING to cut.

Maybe our great Rethuglicon legislators should take a pay cut of like 100%. After all, they are the ones that created this mess. They failed to collect the taxes necessary to keep up the infrastructure and build up a reserve. Instead, they cut taxes and then cut spending because they have to balance the budget. That puts more burden on the counties which are also seeing decreasing income. So the teachers are asked to “give back” their raises. Just another shining of what a wonderful job the Rethuglicons are doing for us. Or should I say to us.

When you vote Rethuglicon, you vote agings your own best interests. And asking teachers to give back their pay raises are living proof.

By Danjonglee

January 8, 2009 8:05 PM | Link to this

Me can’t believe all the whinning going on…..Ye live in the greatest country in world and still complain…Ye have free to go work where ye want….tsk..tsk

By nana

January 8, 2009 8:29 PM | Link to this

Sorry GA Liberal it wasn’t just the Repubs that got us in this mess it was on both side of the aisle.

By BW

January 9, 2009 12:13 AM | Link to this

nana care to explain how the party in power in all branchs of government in this state, which is republican, is not responsible for the damage done? How can the minority have any say?