Recently the Bee published an editorial (“Triple dipping comes to Rocklin,” March 19) on one of the programs our city is using to cut costs in this period of economic downturn.
This program helped our effort to realign the city organization to meet the needs of a changing city and helped us save money by eliminating unneeded positions. When development began to slow, Rocklin began to prepare for the transition from a growing city to a mature city. It was clear the city organization and staffing pattern needed change. So the City Council and staff began planning for city reorganization.
Some city departments were to be downsized, others combined for efficiency. Then the economy plummeted and revenues shrank dramatically, compounding Rocklin’s challenges.
As any organization or company should do in such times, Rocklin cut back. Hiring was frozen, travel stopped, temporary workers were eliminated, employee hours were cut, and layoffs occurred. But the economy worsened. Left with few options, Rocklin did what many private companies commonly do: it offered incentives for employees to retire early.
Fifteen employees opted for early retirement and the city plans to permanently eliminate 13 of those jobs. To assist in the transition, some of the retiring employees have been hired on a part-time, temporary basis, with no benefits. That means they will cost the city much less than when they were full time. All but one will be gone in 2010.
There is a cost for this early-retirement incentive, just over $51,000 per year for 20 years, or slightly more than $1 million total. Even after paying this cost, Rocklin will achieve sizable savings.
According to our estimates, by eliminating 13 jobs, in just the first three years the city will save a total of more than $3 million. That savings takes into account the cost of the temporary workers and the cost of providing the incentive to retire early.
These savings are significant during a time when city revenues have fallen dramatically and cash flow has severely strained city services.
Rocklin has always been a fiscally conservative city. Its navigation through the worst economy in 80 years continues its track record of striving to provide quality services to our citizens in the most efficient manner.