Voices Blogs Beacon Backroom An hour off a week could save the city of St. Louis $3 million a year. | An hour off a week could save the city of St. Louis $3 million a year. |
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| By Jo Mannies, Beacon Political Reporter | |
| Posted 5:00 pm Mon., 02.01.10 | |
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That's one of the proposals that St. Louis Comptroller Darlene Green plans to offer up Tuesday to the aldermanic Ways and Means Committee, which is considering how the city can cut $45-$50 million in expenses in order to balance the budget for the next fiscal year. Green said in an interview that closing all city offices one hour early each week -- she's suggesting shutting down City Hall at 4 p.m. on Fridays -- would save $3 million a year. The savings would come from docking every city employee's pay by one hour a week, in effect imposing a 39-hour work week. Green's other proposal would be to impose a "hard freeze'' in the hiring of new city workers. Under her plan, no vacancies would be filled except for those directly involving public safety, like police and firefighters. The city has been operating under a "soft freeze,'' she said, citing 200 city jobs filled since July. Her staff calculates that a "hard hiring freeze saves $5.4 million if you calculate 100 jobs at $55,000 (avg. employee salary & benefits) for one year,'' a spokesman said. The upshot: Green's suggestions could save the city $8.4 million a year. That leaves $41.6 million left to go.
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An hour off a week could save the city of St. Louis $3 million a year.
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Beacon Backroom Blogroll
North 14th Street reopens
On July 29, St. Louis reopened a two-block stretch in Old North St. Louis that also opens possibilities for more development.(Photos by Rachel Heidenry | Beacon intern)
To see a larger version and read the story, click here .
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