Costa Mesa Unions Slam Plan To Outsource Hundreds Of Jobs
COSTA MESA (CBS) — Facing the possibility of losing up to half of the city's jobs to outsourcing, municipal workers in Costa Mesa expressed a growing frustration with a process one official called "painful" and "disorganized".
KNX 1070's Pete Demetriou reports over 200 employees could get pink slips in the next six months due to outsourcing.
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Interim Communications Director Bill Lobdell said the city is providing emotional counseling to those who need it, while still trying to transition as many employees as possible into other jobs with other employers.
"Whether it's a government agency or a private company, if they do outsource, our people who are affected will get the first shot at jobs," Lobdell said.
City workers' unions, however, aren't satisfied with the effort, with many questioning whether the city violated the California Public Meetings Act in putting the outsourcing plans together.
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That accusation, according to Lobdell, is currently being reviewed by the city attorney's office.
Jennifer Muir with the Costa Mesa Employees Association said city workers are furious over the proposal.
"This is just prolonging an incredibly painful and disorganized and vague process that the public is still extremely puzzled about why they're doing in the first place," Muir said.
