It’s fascinating to Google Ed Harris, the Democrat’s main candidate for Mayor of San Diego. He hypes his status as a career city lifeguard (a wise decision), but systematically hides the fact that he was a public employee labor union boss — a boss that was particularly belligerent about protecting overpaid and overpensioned city employees from any reforms.
Harris has been the long-time leader of the San Diego lifeguard union. He was the driving force behind the lifeguards’ leaving the San Diego Municipal Employees “Association” (government employee unions HATE to be called “unions”) to affiliate with the more militant Teamsters Local 911. But all you find in his bio is that he’s the “spokesperson” for the union and the lifeguards — and that role is downplayed.
Along with the other city labor union bosses, Ed Harris has bullied and cajoled politicians into doing labor’s bidding. These unions regularly pay to get their most compliant sycophants elected (using “Independent Expenditure” campaigns). Only fiscal reformers (led by Carl DeMaio) and the initiation process got pension reform and managed competition adopted in San Diego.
The city union bosses own the city council majority, and have for many years. For proof, look no further than the fact that the city council appointed Ed Harris — arguably the city’s most radical labor union activist — to fill a vacant San Diego City Council seat.
Hopefully this is the year we break that city council majority stranglehold the unions have so long enjoyed. But it’s a battle the unions have won before, and will be “all in” to win again. We shall see.
* * *
SIDE NOTE: Here’s a wrinkle few are aware of: Until taxpayer reforms were adopted, San Diego full-time lifeguards had arguably the best retirement plan in the state — if not the nation. They had TWO extremely lucrative retirement plans, one on top of another. And most of the career lifeguards are still grandfathered under this arrangement.
City career lifeguards (not summer hires) were the only San Diego employee category who got the generous “public safety employee” 90% pension at 30 years starting as early as age 50, PLUS the city’s generous 401k “SPSP” plan usually reserved for only the “nonsafety” (general) employees. This fully matching “SPSP” deal allowed lifeguards to put up to 6% of their pay aside (along with an equal taxpayer contribution) in tax deferred mutual funds.
The result was that a 30 year city lifeguard would retire with a guaranteed pension paycheck LARGER than his net working salary (after deductions), but also would have a city 401k plan usually worth well over $500,000. The bottom line is that their retirement income could easily exceed 130% of their highest salary.
Sweet! Sweet — unless you are a hapless city taxpayer.
The new hires get only the 401k plan, but it’s now a fully matching NINE percent — unheard of in the private sector. And I doubt the city has any problem filling the rare career lifeguard opening.