What is the City of Petersburg afraid of?

City employees have requested payroll deduction for their association dues and the city of Petersburg has denied their request over and over again. City employees have payroll deduction for everything from prepaid legal services to the United Way so why not their association dues? City employees like state employees have a right to join any organization which promotes the interest of its members. The state allows payroll deduction for these types of organizations. Petersburg's denial to grant payroll deduction is discriminatory treatment and violates constitutionally protected freedoms. The City of Petersburg needs to acknowledge their error and extend the same privileges it does to other organization in respect to payroll deduction. Perhaps the city of Petersburg doesn't want to deal with an organization that advocates the fair and impartial treatment of its members!

afraid the underpaid overworked employees may be influenced by the association to stand up for their right to more than slave wages and un-affordable health insurance.......???

I've seen the "overworked" employees in action. BELIEVE me in any other job, aside from Pburg city job, their asses would have been fired LONG ago. These employees are not the poor, helpless people you portray the to be. The private sector wouldn't stand for their BS for one second. Be happy they keep you in that job. Again, if you don't like it....look for another job. Careful what you ask for b/c you just might get it.

They should allow the dues to be deducted, can't see any leg the city has to stand on. As for the productivity of the city workers... it's Petersburg, they chased out many businesses after the tornado in 93 or 94. Their policies are restrictive and insane. They tax like they think they are Atlanta, have the highest crime rate in the State and lets all remember since they have no money they can't afford to hire the best people. They are so far down on police officers that it shouldn't take long before the State police have to step in. Getting due deductions are a very small problem in a much larger train wreck.

Code, have you every heard the phrase......you get what you pay for? Those "overworked" employees have a right to voice their opinions about their working conditions and wages. The city has money to finance questionable building projects but not enough money to recruit and pay Police Officers a decent salary. Its not even about hiring the best people, its about treating the people they employ with respect and paying them a fair wage. The city simply doesn't want the employees griping about issues they don't want to hear about.

Yes, I agree our police officers are underpaid and more than likely overworked. Same with the fire department. You can stand on Sycamore St and count all day the number of city trucks riding the streets...what are they doing? I'm sorry if I implied all city employees are not doing a good job, but the ones that are are being overshadowed by the ones who could care less. When you call a city office, rarely do you get a "thank you" or "you're welcome" at the end of a conversation. This city needs to change it's perception and that can start at the employee level. What kind of association dues deduction are you looking for? Have you gotten in touch with your council memeber?

Certainly there are "bad" employees in both the private and public sectors. And yes the Polcie officers and Fire fighters need to be commended on a daily basis. The City Council, the City Attorney, the Mayor, the head of the payroll department have all said no to the request and when pushed for a reason simply passed the buck. State employees have had payroll deduction for associations since Doug Wilder was Governor. I can only see the city's refusal as an attempt to quite a collective voice. One employee is always labeled disgruntle - imagine the majority of employees standing together. Yes, the city continues to do business as usual but the voices of these disgruntled employees have already sparked several investigations that unless you attended the city council meetings, you are not aware of. Its simple, the city needs to grant the employees payroll deduction and then read and adhere to everything they can find about transparency in government!

Some areas of Petersburg still looks like a ghost town! You would think that the city would be concerned about revitalization. Bring businesses back brings people back and put more money into the city. Can you say Golf Course? And those city trucks are probably being driven by "supervisors" going to check up on the underpaid workers attempting to do their jobs with crappy equipment. I am a city employee that works in an "sick" building and no one cares that me and my co-workers are constantly complaining about our health and having to figure out how to see the doctor when we can't afford to pay the deductibles for our too expensive health insurance.

I registered on Topix so I am not seen as a nomad!

Those are not supervisors. I know most of them. I'd like to see the city gas bill every month.
All the city offices are gross, I used to work in a equally nasty building. With the highest tax rate in the STATE, what are they doing with our money? We need to get rid of 50% of our social programs.

I've been to a lot of the city council meetings and they seem to have a lot of close door sessions. And yeah, the city could use a revitalization plan. Maybe spend some of those tax dollars on something besides special project earmarked by the council - since most of the projects do nothing to improve the quality of life for the average citizen of Petersburg. A golf course!?

I wonder if the employees can sue the city for treating them differently than it does those other organizations that give kick backs on the money they collect from the employees via payroll deduction?

The city prefers not to grant workers this right because they don't want any organization telling the city how to treat or what they think is fair to pay its workers..... now I hear the state attorney general's office is getting into this mess! Yeah its sad when the city leaders have to be forced to do right by the very people that elected them.

What most people do not understand about the city of Petersburg is that it is run "officially" by a group of Morons who are not interested in making a better community, but are more concerned with how many tax dollars they may stuff in their pockets. My husband works for the City and I know for a fact that he is extremely overworked and even more under paid. He has worked there for 10 yrs now and his salary has only increased 15 percent. MEANWHILE, family members of the "higher ups" come in making twice the salary my husband makes. One family member gets paid for 3 different positions, including being a general manager..and the ASSISTANT general manager to himself! So, maybe now you may all understand the City of Petersburgs mindest.

There is indeed strength in numbers. I agree that the city leaders are totally out of touch but the people elected them. What's even sadder is that the city council is made up of democrats. I've been told that several members of the council are members of different associations whom I'm sure could have payroll deduction if they wanted it. I've also heard that an outspoken city employee and workers rights advocate has been terminated for questionable reasons. I think the council should read about the city leadership in Gloucester,VA that's been indicted for wrongdoing. The writing is on the wall.