Sunday, November 1, 2009

Hawaii State Hospital

My Grandma used to call it Penney wise and Pound Foolish. State government is desperately trying to balance the state budget, but their simplistic approach to the problem is apt to backfire. The Hawaii State Hospital is an example. Required furloughs are stressing a staff that must provided 24/7 service to patients. The result is not only added stress, but financial idiocy. Overtime payments to cover staff not available due to furloughs exceed the savings. Further. the freeze on hiring has stressed the staff and increased overtime costs.

Through out the state, offices are close. Employees are swamped by work loads that were difficult before furloughs. Environmental, social, educational and every other program vital to the state are cut and in trouble.

Our legislators need to show some guts and decide what is important and they need to decide how we are going to pay for them even if it means raising taxes. Across the board pay cuts and furloughs are not good management. They are a copout. Just an opinion of Bill Sager

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