1 Xavier Mota
From: Ann Hoover <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, May 8, 2023 8:37 PM
To: councilmtgitems; Gleam Davis; Phil Brock; Caroline Torosis; Lana Negrete; Christine Parra; Oscar de la Torre; Jesse Zwick
Cc: David White; Susan Cline; Anuj Gupta
Subject: 05-09-23 Council Meeting - Item 5.I. (Consent Calendar) - PLEASE PULL AND DISAPPROVE
EXTERNAL
Dear Councilmembers -
Please pull this item from the Consent Calendar and disapprove.
This is a "great to do if you can afford it" expense, but Council eliminated the Organizational and Development Division in 2020 for a reason and this is a lot of money (close to $1,000,000) to spend on coaching and support when these sorts of things can be found online for free in many instances.
Employee benefits like this are often not available in private sector businesses settings.
At a time when Santa Monicans are being told the City is practically bankrupt due to the Uller settlements and to Staff's massive unfunded pension obligation (very few private sector employees get pensions, btw) such that the City is taking steps to sell off many of our community's public land assets, this is exactly the kind of non-essential item that Council should not agree to fund at this time.
Again, please pull this item and disapprove.
Thank you -
Ann Bowman
Santa Monica resident 26+ years
P.S. - There may be an item that needs to be corrected in the Staff Report - my understanding is that almost 100 of the 331 jobs that were eliminated in 2020 were actually lower-wage, hourly positions, not full-time. These were the folks who administered & staffed the afterschool programs (CREST Sports & Playground Access) on the elementary and middle school campuses. When she cast a "no" vote for the 2020 budget restructuring, then-Councilmember Ana Jara said that "you're trying to balance this budget on the backs of black and brown employees." ITEM.5.I.
May 9, 2023
ITEM.5.I.
May 9, 2023