MANAGERS APPEAR AT HEAD OF PAY LINE : MAYOR'S CLAIMS DON'T ADD UP, SURVEY FINDS.Byline: Patrick McGreevy 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. Airports Department General Manager Jack Driscoll's Driscoll's is the brand name of Driscoll Strawberry Associates, Inc., a Watsonville, California-based producer and distributor of fresh berries. Driscoll's is the leading supplier and marketer of organic and non-organic (conventional) berries in the world, including $157,999 salary is higher than comparable directors in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of and Chicago Chicago, city, United States Chicago (shĭkä`gō, shĭkô`gō), city (1990 pop. 2,783,726), seat of Cook co., NE Ill., on Lake Michigan; inc. 1837. , which have airports that handle more passengers annually. Bureau of Sanitation sanitation: see plumbing; sanitary science. chief Del Biagi makes $134,509 while the New York sanitation director receives $133,000 and the comparable director in Chicago earns $88,224. Los Angeles Street Los Angeles Street is a historic avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, California. Traffic on the street travels northbound only, from the I-10 Freeway in the south of downtown, through the Fashion District, and on through Little Tokyo, where it ends after passing between LAPD Maintenance Bureau chief Pat Howard Patrick William Howard, usually known as Pat Howard or Paddy Howard (born 14 November 1973) is head coach at Leicester Tigers and a former Australian rugby union international who played centre or fly-half. He was educated at Queensland University. is paid $113,462 while Detroit's street maintenance chief makes $57,400, and Chicago's earns $88,224. In New York, where the street maintenance and transportation functions are merged, the administrator receives $133,000. Mayor Richard Riordan Richard J. Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is a Republican politician from California, U.S. who served as the California Secretary of Education from 2003–2005 and as Mayor of Los Angeles from 1993–2001. Riordan ran for Governor of California unsuccessfully in 2002. has proposed hefty heft·y adj. heft·i·er, heft·i·est 1. Of considerable weight; heavy. 2. Rugged and powerful. See Synonyms at heavy. 3. raises for Driscoll Driscoll is one derivation of the Irish surname "O'Driscoll". It originates from Cork in the Republic of Ireland. Most O'Driscolls and Driscolls live in Ireland, with many more living in the United States, Canada and Australia. , Biagi, Howard Howard, English noble family. Landowners in Norfolk from the 13th cent., the Howards obtained the duchy of Norfolk through the marriage of Sir Robert Howard to Margaret Mowbray, daughter of Thomas Mowbray, 1st duke of Norfolk. , and seven other top city managers outside the city's merit pay Noun 1. merit pay - extra pay awarded to an employee on the basis of merit (especially to school teachers) pay, remuneration, salary, wage, earnings - something that remunerates; "wages were paid by check"; "he wasted his pay on drink"; "they saved a quarter of all system, arguing that the increases are needed to keep the executives from being hired away by other cities. But a Daily News survey of the largest cities in the country and major cities within California California (kăl'ĭfôr`nyə), most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W). indicates that some of the managers already are making more than their counterparts in other government agencies. For instance, Chicago's new aviation commissioner is getting a $125,000 salary to oversee the busiest airport system in the country, including O'Hare O'Hare may refer to:
Riordan has asked the council to boost Driscoll's salary to $175,000 and raise the pay for nine other managers. But the City Council balked balk v. balked, balk·ing, balks v.intr. 1. To stop short and refuse to go on: The horse balked at the jump. 2. Oct. 18 after several members said they needed more information about salaries in other cities for comparison. Riordan said in an interview last week that he believes the managers are underpaid un·der·paid v. Past tense and past participle of underpay. underpaid Adjective not paid as much as the job deserves underpaid adj → and he will continue to press for the raises to be approved. ``This has nothing to do with merit,'' Riordan said. ``These general managers are underpaid compared to the heads of other parts of the city and compared to heads of comparable departments in other cities and in the private sector. ``We're going to lose some good people without this,'' Riordan said. Asked what information the mayor had to reach the conclusion that managers are underpaid, Riordan said, ``We made a lot of studies on it.'' But when asked to produce the information, the Mayor's Office provided current salary information comparing pay for only four of the 10 positions; two pension managers, the sanitation chief and the personnel director. Other data presented to the City Council by Keith Comrie, city administrative officer, was discovered to be 10 years old, a factor which led to the council balking balking, baulking see jibbing. at the raises and ordering a 30-day study of salaries elsewhere. Councilman Joel Wachs Joel Wachs served for several terms as Los Angeles City Councilman for the 2nd district. He was first elected by defeating incumbent James B. Potter. While in office, Wachs chaired the Public Works Committee and vice-chair of the Environmental Quality & Waste Management said he opposed the raises on grounds that they are offered without performance reviews and therefore circumvent cir·cum·vent tr.v. cir·cum·vent·ed, cir·cum·vent·ing, cir·cum·vents 1. To surround (an enemy, for example); enclose or entrap. 2. To go around; bypass: circumvented the city. the merit pay system set up by the city. Wachs said he never bought the argument that salary increases are needed to make Los Angeles competitive so he is not surprised that a survey finds many of them already are. ``I never accepted that (noncompetitive) argument,'' Wachs said. ``I've always felt Los Angeles treats its general managers much more generously than other cities.'' Councilman Richard Alarcon also said he was skeptical of the mayor's claim that all 10 managers proposed for raises deserve increases because their salaries are noncompetitive. ``I'm not opposed to increases in salary where we have the comparative studies showing they are not competitive but I wasn't confident that all of these general managers fit into that category,'' Alarcon said. When confronted with the results of the Daily News survey, the mayor's budget officer, Chris O'Donnell, said Friday that outside-salary considerations were only the primary concern for some of the 10 managers - those heading the DWP DWP Department of Work and Pensions (UK) DWP Drinking Water Program DWP Dynamic Weapon Pricing (gamin, Counter-Strike: Source) DWP Department of Water & Power DWP Drinking Water Protection , pension, airport and sanitation departments Noun 1. sanitation department - the department of local government responsible for collecting and disposing of garbage euphemism - an inoffensive or indirect expression that is substituted for one that is considered offensive or too harsh . For other managers, outside-salary comparisons are just one factor, he said. O'Donnell said the mayor is convinced there are a sufficient number of other agencies paying higher or competitive salaries that they are vulnerable to being recruited away from Los Angeles. O'Donnell said that even though some busier airport systems may pay less than Driscoll gets, some airports pay more. He cited the Dallas salary of $186,500 and the $192,000 paid the the manager of Dulles Airport near Washington, D.C. Examples easy to find ``You can always find examples of where people are paid less or more,'' O'Donnell said. What cinched the argument that Driscoll's salary needs to be made more competitive is that one airport system currently paying a lower salary than Driscoll's is trying to recruit Driscoll, O'Donnell said. ``It's pretty clear they are going to have to pay more if they want to recruit him,'' O'Donnell said. O'Donnell said Howard of the Street Maintenance Bureau may be making more than some bureau heads in other cities, but he oversees a staff and budget that is larger than those overseen by the Los Angeles city clerk Los Angeles City Clerk is in charge of record keeping for the city and elections. The current city clerk is Frank Martinez. Berfore Martinz took office in 2000, J. Michael Carey was the clerk. and librarian (1) A person who works in the data library and keeps track of the tapes and disks that are stored and logged out for use. Also known as a "file librarian" or "media librarian." See data library. (2) See CA-Librarian. , who are paid more. Some council members have said they won't vote for the raises unless they are provided with current information showing Los Angeles salaries are not competitive. As the comparison with Chicago shows, that information may be hard to produce for some of the managers. The Chicago airport Chicago Airport may refer to:
The Daily News found that Driscoll's current salary, without the raise, is by far the highest among the managers of the five busiest airports systems in the country. Driscoll's $157,999 salary beats the $127,000 pay for the executive director of the New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. airport system, which had 77.6 million passengers last year. The manager of thsae Houston system (the fourth largest) receives $108,069. A survey by the aviation industry found the average salary for the general managers of the nation's 27 large hub airports Africa Algeria
But Driscoll said there are some airport managers with higher salaries. He pointed to the Dallas airport agency, which he said is of comparable size to Los Angeles, and which pays its director $186,500. ``I think I should be compensated appropriately,'' Driscoll said in arguing for the $175,000 salary. Councilwoman Ruth Galanter Ruth Galanter was a city councilwoman from Los Angeles. She served as President Pro-Tempore and President of the city council. also supports the raise, saying the opposition voiced by some council members has been ``insulting'' to talented managers. ``I believe our needs in Los Angeles are great enough that we should go out of our way to make our salaries truly, really competitive,'' Galanter said. She said some city managers are being recruited by other agencies. ``I would be sorry to lose some of our general managers,'' she said. When told Driscoll's salary is higher than managers running busier airport systems, Galanter said she fears it may be attractive to run a less busy airport even if the pay is less. ``The other jobs, even at a slightly lower salary, might be more attractive if they are easier,'' she said. Pay was key factor Galanter pointed to the retirement announcement of Department of Water and Power chief Bill McCarley after the council delayed action Noun 1. delayed action - a mechanism that automatically delays the release of a camera shutter for a fixed period of time so that the photographer can appear in the picture on the raises as a warning sign that the city needs to make its salaries competitive. McCarley, whose resignation is effective Feb. 1, said compensation was a key factor in his decision to leave. ``I think McCarley's departure is an omen of things to come,'' she said. Unlike McCarley, Driscoll said he likes the job he is in and has no plans to leave over a salary dispute. Similarly, Los Angeles personnel director Jurutha Brown likes the job she was elevated to a year ago, but Riordan has proposed to increase her pay from $119,267 to $123,881. The data compiled bysa the city compares Brown's salary to the pay of just one other person, the county personnel director, who makes $135,000. But a comparison with other cities finds Brown's salary is in the midrange midrange Epidemiology The halfway point or midpoint in a set of observations; for most data, MR is calculated as the sum of the smallest observation and the largest observation, divided by 2; for age data, one is added to the numerator; a midrange is usually of other large cities. Chicago, the third-largest city in the country, pays its personnel director $100,392 while Houston, the fourth largest, pays $88,000. San Diego San Diego (săn dēā`gō), city (1990 pop. 1,110,549), seat of San Diego co., S Calif., on San Diego Bay; inc. 1850. San Diego includes the unincorporated communities of La Jolla and Spring Valley. Coronado is across the bay. pays $100,656, Detroit pays $107,107, San Francisco San Francisco (săn frănsĭs`kō), city (1990 pop. 723,959), coextensive with San Francisco co., W Calif., on the tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known as the Golden pays $124,728 and New York pays $133,000. Tom Sisson, assistant city administrator, said Brown is relatively new in her position so her pay would be less than veterans in other positions. He said more worrisome is that Brown's salary is less than 10 percent higher than her nearest subordinate, who makes $112,000. That was the primary concern expressed in proposing a raise for Community Development director Parker Anderson Anderson, river, Canada Anderson, river, c.465 mi (750 km) long, rising in several lakes in N central Northwest Territories, Canada. It meanders north and west before receiving the Carnwath River and flowing north to Liverpool Bay, an arm of the Arctic , whose salary is actually the same as his assistant general manager. Others have subordinates whose salaries are less than 10 percent away, including Street Maintenance Bureau chief Howard, who the mayor is proposing receive a 9.8 percent raise in salary from $113,462 to $124,800. But a survey of other cities indicates that Howard's salary compares favorably fa·vor·a·ble adj. 1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds. 2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis. 3. to counterparts in other agencies. Although some of the job descriptions vary in other cities, the person in charge of street maintenance in Detroit makes $57,400, while San Diego pays $75,456, Chicago pays $88,224 and San Francisco pays $124,056. In New York, where the street maintenance and transportation functions are merged, the administrator receives $133,000, while a position with similarly merged functions pays $112,000 in Houston. Los Angeles' Transportation Department manager, Bob Yates, is proposed to receive a raise from $124,821 to $138,559. Transportation Department heads receive $75,480 in San Diego, $106,680 in Chicago, $107,000 in Detroit and $121,020 in San Francisco. Riordan has also proposed a raise which would boost the salary of Sanitation Bureau sachief Biagi from $134,509 to $143,028. Biagi oversees the city's solid waste and sewage treatment Sewage treatment Unit processes used to separate, modify, remove, and destroy objectionable, hazardous, and pathogenic substances carried by wastewater in solution or suspension in order to render the water fit and safe for intended uses. systems while many sanitation bureau heads in other cities only oversee solid waste disposal. In Houston, where the manager oversees solid and sewage Sewage Water-carried wastes, in either solution or suspension, that flow away from a community. Also known as wastewater flows, sewage is the used water supply of the community. It is more than 99. waste, the position pays $99,000. In New York, the sanitation director receives $133,000, while the job pays $88,224 in Chicago and $57,400 in Detroit, where only solid waste is managed. Updated comparisons Biagi and Brown's positions are two of the four on which city officials have some updated comparisons. The Mayor's Office said that for comparison's sake, it looked at the Los Angeles County Sanitation District, which pays its director $176,000, the Orange County Sanitation District, which pays $138,000 to its general manager, and the San Diego County Public Works public works pl.n. Construction projects, such as highways or dams, financed by public funds and constructed by a government for the benefit or use of the general public. Noun 1. director, who makes $102,642. The Mayor's Office also was able to provide comparisons for the managers of the city's two major pension systems. Oscar Peters Oscar Peter (born June 11, 1981 in Santiago, Dominican Republic) is a Swiss figure skater who currently competes as an ice dancer. As a single skater, he was the 1998-2000 Swiss national silver medalist and the 2001-2003 national bronze medalist. , general manager of the City Employees Retirement System, is proposed to receive a 21.4 percent salary increase from $89,387 to $108,597 to manage a system with $5 billion in assets. Gary Mattingly, who heads the Police and Fire Pension System, is proposed for a raise from $97,802 to $110,998 to manage a system with $7 billion in assets. The city's comparison data indicates the head of the Los Angeles County pension system, with $16.5 billion in assets, makes $103,000, while the San Francisco city pension manager receives $118,155 to oversee a system with $6.7 billion in assets and the San Diego County manager gets $108,971 to manage $2.1 billion in assets. Riordan also is proposing a raise for the city's Cultural Affairs Department General Manager Adolfo Nodal Having to do with nodes. See node. NODAL - Interpreted language implemented on Norsk Data's NORD-10 computers. Used by CERN and DESY high energy physics labs to control their accelerator hardware, PADAC and SEDAC. Included trackball input, graphics. , whose salary would go from $84,439 to $93,313. Some cities do not have a Cultural Affairs division as large as Los Angeles', but in cases where they do, Nodal's counterparts in other cities make: $86,304 in Chicago, $81,000 to $1sa07,000 in Detroit and $117,370 in New York. Another difficult comparison is for the Water and Power Department, whose general manager has announced he will retire. The mayor is proposing to increase McCarley's salary from $175,935 to $190,000. McCarley argued that the raise is justified, noting that the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District pays its manager $195,000 to run a system one-fourth the size of Los Angeles'. However, there are few other, comparable agencies that operate both water and power systems. Chicago pays its water department chief $106,680, while Detroit pays the head of its water and sewage department $107,000. In San Diego, the head of the water utility makes $111,000, while the New York water czar makes $133,000 and the Chicago water chief makes $106,680. Alarcon and other council members said they look forward to getting some comparison information. If the comparison shows a manager making a better salary than counterparts in other cities, then the only way Alarcon would support a raise is based on merit. ``Without the merit pay there really is no leg to stand on,'' Alarcon said. TOP CITY SALARIES Here is a comparison of annual salaries and proposed raises for eight top managers in Los Angeles city government compared with top managers in other major cities. The name and title of the Los Angeles manager, his current and proposed salary heads each category. AIRPORT GENERAL MANAGER Jack Driscoll, general manager of Los Angeles Department of Airports, third busiest system in the nation. $157,999 - current salary $175,000 - proposed That compares with: - $125,000 for Chicago's aviation commissioner, who oversees the nation's busiest airport system; - $127,000 for New York City's airport director, who is in charge of the second busiest system; - $108,069 in Houston; - $130,000 in Atlanta; - $131,472 in San Francisco; - $186,500 in Dallas. PERSONNEL DEPARTMENT xJurutha Brown, Los Angeles personnel director current salary: $119,267 proposed $123,881 That compares with: - $135,000 for the Los Angeles County personnel director; - $100,392 in Chicago; - $88,000 in Houston; - $100,656 in San Diego; - $107,107 in Detroit; - $124,728 in San Francisco; - $133,000 in New York City. STREET MAINTENANCE Los Angeles Street Maintenance Bureau chief Pat Howard current salary: $113,462 Proposed: $124,800 That compares with: - $57,400 for Detroit's street maintenance chief; - $75,456 in San Diego; - $88,224 in Chicago; - $124,056 in San Francisco. - $133,000 in New York, where the street maintenance and transportation functions are merged; - $112,000 in Houston, where street maintenance and transportation functions are merged. TRANSPORTATION Los Angeles' Transportation Department manager Bob Yates current salary: $124,821 Proposed: $138,559 That compares with: - $75,480 in San Diego; - $106,680 in Chicago; - $107,000 in Detroit; - $121,020 in San Francisco. SANITATION Los Angeles Sanitation Bureau chief Del Biagi current salary: $134,509 Proposed: $143,028 That compares with: $176,000 for Los Angeles County Sanitation District; $138,000 for Orange County Sanitation District; $99,000 in Houston; $133,000 in New York City; $102,642 for San Diego County; $88,224 in Chicago, where only solid waste is managed; $57,400 in Detroit, where only solid waste is managed; RETIREMENT SYSTEM Oscar Peters, general manager of the Los Angeles City Employees Retirement System Current salary: $89,387 Proposed: $108,597 Gary Mattingly, who heads the Los Angeles Police and Fire Pension System Current salary $97,802 Proposed $110,998 That compares with: $103,000 for Los Angeles County; $1 x18,155 for San Francisco; $108,971 for San Diego. CULTURAL AFFAIRS Los Angeles Cultural Affairs Department general manager Adolfo Nodal current salary: $84,439 Proposed: $93,313 That compares with: $86,304 in Chicago; $81,000 to $107,000 in Detroit; $117,370 in New York City. UTILITIES The Los Angeles Water and Power Department general manager, Bill McCarley current salary: $175,935 Proposed: $190,000 That compares with: - $106,680 for Chicago's water department chief; - $107,000 for Detroit's water and sewage department head; - $111,000 for San Diego's water ulility head; - $195,000 for the manager of the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District; - $133,000 for the head of New York City's water utility head. CAPTION(S): Chart Chart: (color) TOP CITY SALARIES (see text) |
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