Tuesday, February 9, 2010

Double-Dipping: It's the MA Way...

On the clock, clerk is a wedding casher
Wedding bells are ringing at Boston City Hall - and so is the cash register - as the city clerk is nearly doubling her salary hitching couples as a justice of the peace on taxpayer time, raising questions whether her profits should be going back to Hub coffers instead.

City Clerk Rosaria E. Salerno pocketed $68,000 last year by performing 1,140 marriages at $60 a couple, on top of her roughly $100,000 annual salary. Though a lawful and long-standing practice, Salerno’s side income amounts to the base pay of a
typical teacher, librarian or firefighter at a time when the threat of layoffs looms constantly for workers.
$68K a year ABOVE her six-figure salary??? And this is in a state in dire financial need that had to raise the sales tax last year to cover budget shortfalls... And $68K is the BASE pay of a teacher? I thought all we ever heard was how underpaid teachers were? $68K - even in Boston - is a pretty hefty salary to start with...

I loved this part:
At an average of 22 per week, Salerno says the marriages don’t interfere with her other duties.

More than four ceremonies a day doesn't interfere with her day-to-day job??? Unless each ceremony takes less than 5 minutes, I fail to see how that is possible. Assuming that the paperwork, scheduling, and actual ceremony takes a half-hour, that's more than two hours of an 8 hour day already... So, if this person has less than 6 hours of actual City Clerk work to perform each day, shouldn't she be considered part time? Yeah, I didn't think so...

Ah, MA. Where you can work a second job - while at your first job - if you're a government employee...

That is all.

5 comments:

Justin Buist said...

Caught an article the other day about the salary of toll booth workers on the turnpike.

Average salary: $71k a year.

Brad_in_IL said...

Don't forget Willie Lantigua in Lawrence . . . . he's both Mayor and State Rep at the same time. Double-dipping on salary, pension, per diem's, other perks, etc., etc., etc. There's a hearing today on H4421 -- a bill proposed by Cadillac Deval on a scheme to provide the City of Lawrence with about $35 million in political payoff funds, aka a 'loan', with Lawrence having no visible means of paying back the note. Gah.

Jay G said...

Justin,

Yep. Saw that one too. Cadillac Deval's talking about automatic tolls so that they won't have to pay the toll-takers.

RIIIIIIGHT.

They're union. They'll just get absorbed and given new state jobs at the same level - or higher.

Brad,

That's slated for 2PM, actually... :)

libertyman said...

In Massachusetts, unemployment rates are due to increase by 40% in April. FORTY PERCENT! No wonder people are reluctant to hire. Let's see, $71,000 to take tolls, no wonder they screwed the people by not making the Pike free as promised. Wow, just wow!

Anonymous said...

Good lord, here in Texas after 30 years teaching physics I made $62k and was one of the highest paid teachers in the state. State minimum for a first year teacher with a bachelor's is about $29k. I guess if you can stick your hand out a window palm up in Mass it's worth more than being able to explain quantum physics in Texas.