Councillor asks why city workers stand there while one guy works

The question that ratepayers have been asking since time immemorial was finally posed by a city councillor this week in the hallowed halls of Sault Ste. Marie's Civic Centre.

"This sounds like I'm nit-picking," Ward 5 Councillor Frank Fata told a meeting of the city's finance committee on Wednesday.

"I've been on the council for 12 years," Fata said.

"How many times do we have to hear that there's four people out there doing a job, and three of them are standing around and the other guy's working? That is very frustrating to hear that."

Ward 4 Councillor Rick Niro responded that city workers are no different from private-sector crews.

"When you look at the asphalt companies when they're doing work, it looks like a ton of employees," Niro said.

"But when you find out, dig into it, they're all necessary."

"We're no different. It used to be we hired truck operators. Through union contracts, that's all they could do, is drive a truck. So if they're waiting to get their tandem filled, they're standing outside, waiting. He can't do anything. Can't go pick up a shovel."

"The labourer can't touch the equipment. He's the shovel. But there's a time for everybody to work during that project, but it's not all at the same time." Niro said.

"Sometimes, you've got six employees that can't do anything, waiting for a load of gravel to get there, or asphalt or whatever. So they're delayed, all sitting under a tree in the shade, waiting for that truck to get there."

"What do we want to do with them? Send them back to works department until the truck gets there and send them back? There's a lot of different circumstances."

"Those are all matters that foremen and superintendents have to deal with," Fata shot back.

"They're the ones that have to oversee these employees and make sure they're getting the most efficiencies."

Al Horsman, the city's chief administrative officer, said the city hasn't been doing a good enough job describing what each person in a work crew is responsible for doing.

The exchange took place during a discussion about service levels.