CERTAIN PHONE CALLS COULD TAKE TOLL; L.A. COUNTY WORKERS RECEIVE WARNING.Byline: Douglas Douglas, city, Isle of Man Douglas, city (1991 pop. 19,950), capital of the Isle of Man, Great Britain. It is a popular resort, connected by rail to Ramsey and Port Erin, on the Irish Sea. Tourism is the chief industry. Haberman Daily News Staff Writer Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County employees risk firing or other disciplinary action if they use government phones to call psychic psychic /psy·chic/ (si´kik) 1. pertaining to the psyche. 2. mental (1). psy·chic adj. 1. hotlines, sex lines and other 900 numbers, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. a memo issued to workers Tuesday. Improved discipline would save at least $500,000 a year, equivalent to more than 1 percent of the county's annual $45 million telephone budget, according to a county audit. The Daily News obtained a copy of the audit Tuesday after it had been kept under wraps since September to avoid tipping employees to ways of misusing phones without getting caught. ``We have warned everybody,'' said Michael Henry, the county's director of personnel. ``Calling a 900 number or a phone sex number one time is enough for us to take action.'' Joanne Sturges, who heads county supervisors' executive office, issued a memo Tuesday telling employees that misuse of county phones could result in punishment up to and including dismissal. The Internal Services Department, which administers the county phone budget, has asked telephone companies to block a variety of calls, including 900 and 976 numbers, international calls and collect calls. ``We are being credited for unauthorized calls,'' said Daphne daphne, in botany daphne, common name for, and genus name of, certain low deciduous or evergreen shrubs native to Eurasia. In the United States several naturalized species are cultivated for their handsome foliage and fragrant flowers, e.g., D. Bell, the department's manager for customer relations and board liaison. In their report last year, auditors AUDITORS, practice. Persons lawfully appointed to examine and digest accounts referred to them, take down the evidence in writing, which may be lawfully offered in relation to such accounts, and prepare materials on which a decree or judgment may be made; and to report the whole, together outlined a variety of abuses, including making long-distance calls to relatives and friends, as well as other personal calls that could have cost taxpayers as much as $500,000 a year. Calls to 900 and 976 numbers, such as psychic or phone sex hotlines, cost the taxpayers $2,000 a month, auditors estimated. They said there also were calls to dating-service voice mail. They said other misuse involved collect calls and third-party calls billed to another phone number. Third-party calls are prohibited pro·hib·it tr.v. pro·hib·it·ed, pro·hib·it·ing, pro·hib·its 1. To forbid by authority: Smoking is prohibited in most theaters. See Synonyms at forbid. 2. and were costing the county about $5,000 a month. Some collect calls are allowed, but misuse was costing the county $85,000 a month, the auditors said. |
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