No Work, All Pay at City Hall in Espanola

From the Rio Grande Sun - Each Española resident paid approximately $5.50 for city employees to take a paid week off between the Christmas and New Year holidays. The City Council voted in November to approve City Manager James Lujan’s $56,500 recommendation to pay city employees for not working between Dec. 27 and Jan. 2. The move came in the middle of a fiscal year in which the Council approved 12 mandatory unpaid furlough days for all city employees to trim $368,308 from its budget. Mayor Alice Lucero said the holidays are the most unproductive time of year for city employees, with children being off from school and families to care for. She said the leave also saves the city money because the buildings aren’t in use. However, state Municipal League general counsel Randy Van Vleck said previously giving employees that much paid time off may not be a great idea. He said the public may get angry that employees are getting paid “for work not being done.” Van Vleck also said it wasn’t fair that some employees get the time off while others don’t. Read more

No Work, All Pay at City Hall in Espanola