County's high-paid jobs escape 'chop from top'
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Chicago Sun-Times
By Steve Patterson, Staff Reporter
September 9, 2007
As Cook County Board President Todd Stroger looked for jobs
to cut during this year's budget battle, union leaders and
critics chanted for him to "chop from the top."
But when the budget was finally passed, many complained that
Stroger had cut thousands of lower-paid, frontline workers
in order to protect higher-paid, politically connected patronage
workers.
In fact, a Chicago Sun-Times review of county payroll records
reveals, while recent budget cuts did whittle the payroll,
the number of high-paid jobs actually increased, meaning layoffs
hit low-paid employees hardest.
And, records show, Stroger's layoffs and cuts have made him
the highest-paid non-hospital employee in all of county government.
"This budget was designed to enrich the political class
at the expense of hardworking, frontline workers who deliver
real services to the public," said Commissioner Forrest
Claypool, who was the loudest critic of Stroger's budget cuts.
"These numbers clearly show that bureaucrats and paper-pushers
at the top of the food chain were protected. People on the
lower end of the scale just got hammered."
Stroger blames union contracts
Records provided by the county show that while there were
26,731 county employees when Stroger took office in December,
that was cut down to 24,815 by late July.
But the number of people making more than $60,000 grew from
6,497 people in December to 7,672 in July.
And there was virtually no change in the number of county
employees making more than $100,000.
Stroger spokeswoman Ibis Antongiorgi said much of the increase
in salaries is because of union contracts signed years ago
by the board.
"One of the county's biggest problems is a structural
deficit created by entering into obligations without the revenue
to support them," she said, adding that it's also important
to offer "competitive salaries in order to attract and
retain top health- care professionals."
"There was never any intention to cut more lower-level
positions than higher-level ones," she said.
The county's highest-paid employee, records show, is Dr. Peter
Egofske, who makes $400,000 annually -- less than last year's
highest-paid employee, Dr. Howard Zaren, who made $444,239.
But last year, the highest-paid employee not working at a
hospital was information technology director Cathy Maras-O'Leary,
who made $190,437.
Now, it's Stroger, who makes $170,000.
Those findings won't help Stroger as he prepares to introduce
tax increases to balance the 2008 budget. He's expecting the
same criticisms -- that there is too much bloat and unnecessary
middle management and not enough frontline workers.
Yet he is adamant that there is no more fat to cut from the
county government payroll.
"President Stroger keeps asking us to show him where
the waste is -- well, here it is," Commissioner Tim Schneider
said of the Sun-Times' findings. "These numbers prove
he isn't cutting where he should."
