By
DEBORAH A. MILES
At PEF’s 31st Annual Convention in September, delegates were asked to submit their ideas on how the state can save money.
Out of 464 suggestions, more than half of the delegates pointed to consultant use, saying state workers can do the job for a lot less.
“The overuse of consultants in the state has been a message PEF has hammered to legislators and the governor for years,” said PEF President Ken Brynien. “The fact so many of our members recognize this waste shows us our message is being supported. We need our members to help pinpoint where consultant use can be eliminated or reduced.”
About a quarter of the suggestions said the state hires too many retirees as consultants. Some of them get paid twice as much for the same job they performed as a state employee.
Delegates also targeted commissioners and their staff and vehicle use.
One suggestion said, “All commissioners should be located in Albany to reduce travel costs. They also need to cut back on their cars. Ours has three.”
Another said, “Fire commissioners who don’t listen to the governor.”
Quite a few said to decrease the number of deputy commissioners.
And one delegate said, “There have been 10 political appointees statewide that act as the commissioner’s go-betweens at the state Department of Labor. They are each earning $100,000. That’s more than a million dollars wasted.”
Travel of nurses was another area where delegates felt the state could save money. Many suggestions said the state should examine better ways for nurses and other health care workers to consolidate home visits to one area, instead of having them travel across the state to service a single individual.
A delegate from the state Department of Correctional Services said it was a waste to transfer inmates from one
facility to another.
An interesting suggestion came from someone who said the state is wasting time and money on orientation for new employees, saying the quality of the orientation was poor and resulted in an increased turnover of staff.
Another wrote the state needed to reduce the scope and time of new employees’ orientations.
Going green was on the minds of delegates. People wrote about the huge amount of paper being wasted, how people print out all their e-mails, duplicate paperwork and waste a large amount of money on postage.
“Let’s use more economical technology for communication” was another message to the state.
Lack of energy conservation also cropped up. Some people said the air conditioning is turned on or is too cold when not needed.
And many felt there should be a reduction in the number of people holding management positions.
“PEF extends its thanks to everyone who offered a suggestion,” Brynien said. “The ones we can verify will be in a report and sent to the governor before the new year.
Ways to save state moneyBy
DEBORAH A. MILESAt PEF’s 31st Annual Convention in September, delegates were asked to submit their ideas on how the state can save money.
Out of 464 suggestions, more than half of the delegates pointed to consultant use, saying state workers can do the job for a lot less.
“The overuse of consultants in the state has been a message PEF has hammered to legislators and the governor for years,” said PEF President Ken Brynien. “The fact so many of our members recognize this waste shows us our message is being supported. We need our members to help pinpoint where consultant use can be eliminated or reduced.”
About a quarter of the suggestions said the state hires too many retirees as consultants. Some of them get paid twice as much for the same job they performed as a state employee.
Delegates also targeted commissioners and their staff and vehicle use.
One suggestion said, “All commissioners should be located in Albany to reduce travel costs. They also need to cut back on their cars. Ours has three.”
Another said, “Fire commissioners who don’t listen to the governor.”
Quite a few said to decrease the number of deputy commissioners.
And one delegate said, “There have been 10 political appointees statewide that act as the commissioner’s go-betweens at the state Department of Labor. They are each earning $100,000. That’s more than a million dollars wasted.”
Travel of nurses was another area where delegates felt the state could save money. Many suggestions said the state should examine better ways for nurses and other health care workers to consolidate home visits to one area, instead of having them travel across the state to service a single individual.
A delegate from the state Department of Correctional Services said it was a waste to transfer inmates from one
facility to another.
An interesting suggestion came from someone who said the state is wasting time and money on orientation for new employees, saying the quality of the orientation was poor and resulted in an increased turnover of staff.
Another wrote the state needed to reduce the scope and time of new employees’ orientations.
Going green was on the minds of delegates. People wrote about the huge amount of paper being wasted, how people print out all their e-mails, duplicate paperwork and waste a large amount of money on postage.
“Let’s use more economical technology for communication” was another message to the state.
Lack of energy conservation also cropped up. Some people said the air conditioning is turned on or is too cold when not needed.
And many felt there should be a reduction in the number of people holding management positions.
“PEF extends its thanks to everyone who offered a suggestion,” Brynien said. “The ones we can verify will be in a report and sent to the governor before the new year.