Saturday, March 19, 2016
By Jordan Cohen
NILES
An angry Mayor Thomas Scarnecchia rescinded an order by his Service Director James DePasquale that would have given city employees an extra day off Easter weekend.
DePasquale’s decision led to an immediate outcry from city council and the public, which flooded council members with irate calls Friday.
“He took it upon himself and I’m mad,” Scarnecchia told The Vindicator in a call from his hospital bed. The mayor said he has been undergoing tests since Tuesday night. “I don’t know what got into him.”
Scarnecchia said the service director did not discuss his plans in advance. The mayor revealed he was unaware of the situation until informed of it by a reporter.
The furor began when DePasquale announced through an email he was adding next Thursday as an extra day off in addition to Good Friday when City Hall is closed.
Council members immediately took to social media and emails to voice their opposition vehemently.
Several said DePasquale’s timing could not have been worse after the overwhelming voter approval of a 0.5 percent income tax increase to generate revenue for the safety forces.
DePasquale did not respond to several Vindicator messages by phone and in person at his office; however by late afternoon, he issued an apologetic email to council and state auditors explaining his actions.
“I appreciate all the hard work, long hours, sacrifices and loyalty that city workers have shown to this administration [and] had this day off in mind to show my appreciation,” DePasquale wrote. “I take full responsibility and apologize for any inconvenience this has caused.”
“The public just put their trust in us and now this happens,” said an exasperated Councilman Steven Mientkiewicz, D-2nd.
“This leaves the perception that this administration is careless,” said Steve Papalas, D-at large.
“This is mind-numbingly irresponsible [and] completely baffling,” said Councilman Ryan McNaughton, D-at large. “My phone has been blowing up.”
“It is absolutely astonishing you would entertain such a horrible idea,” wrote Robert Marino, council president, in an email to DePasquale. Marino questioned how an extra day off could be granted when the city is asking for conciliations in contract negotiations.
In his initial email response, DePasquale was unsympathetic. He wrote the decision to authorize the additional day off was “within my authority as safety director.”
He did not have the authority, however, according to city Law Director Terry Dull.
“He could close City Hall in the event of an emergency, but this was obviously not one of those situations,” Dull said. The law director said scheduled days off can only be established through collective-bargaining negotiations with unions or by council ordinances for nonunion employees.
The city’s state-appointed financial supervisors also opposed the extra day off, everal council members said.
City Auditor Giovanne Merlo wrote he would not authorize payroll checks for the extra holiday because of possible findings of recovery by the state against the city.