Employee pay raises should be built into budget -- annually.
Sep. 14—Thumbs up to both Mayor Rob Rappold and the Beckley Common Council for approving a $2-an-hour pay raise for some 40 Beckley Board of Public Works employees earlier this week — and, by all appearances, playing nice while doing so. The hike, which equates to an annual bump of $4,160 in pay, follows an even bigger jump — $8,000 — for members of the city's police department.
The council should follow up in the coming months to consider making pay hikes part and parcel with each and every fiscal year budget so that taxpayer-supported workers — who do our bidding — know what's coming and do not fall between the financial cracks. It was a surprise to many, even shameful, to learn that several city employees, because of their low pay, were receiving public assistance to make ends meet. Clearly, further adjustments — near term, not years down the road — may be necessary.
Of special note, the mayor broke from normal order of council business to allow public comment on the proposal — before council voted on the matter. Public comment is typically the last item on council's agenda. But in this case, the mayor showed due respect to Beckley citizens and city workers in attendance, letting them have a say before council members cast their deciding vote.
Now, about that lease for Fruits of Labor.
----In yet another sign that West Virginia government — starting with Gov. Jim Justice and the Legislature — either does not know how to care for the state's more vulnerable populations or couldn't care less, a June visit by state health inspectors to the William R. Sharpe, Jr. Hospital in Weston showed the facility continues to house patients without adequate treatment plans.
The hospital is a 200-bed psychiatric facility operated by the state health department that has had a history of overcrowding and alleged patient abuse, and failing to help patients who don't need to be there move on. A patient advocate, Mike Folio, legal director for Disability Rights West Virginia, referred to it as "warehousing patients."
"They end up being housed there with no or little prospect of being discharged," Folio told Amelia Ferrell Knisely, a reporter with West Virginia Watch. "Patients are developing behaviors because of their stay."
Here's the thing: Sharpe has had these issues for years — and lawmakers, fully cognizant of the issues, have promised remedies and yet, as is their collective habit, have done nothing.
Not only is the state's lack of action an embarrassment and a poor reflection on the state, it is negligence leaning toward criminal. It is way beyond a simple double thumbs down. The state needs to get its act together. Quickly. Lives depend on it.
----Building an economy from the ground up takes loads of patience, persistence and, typically, significant financial assistance to bring a vision to reality.
In that vein, good on the Raleigh County Commission for voting to award $250,000 to New River Community and Technical College for its aviation school — helping the college to close within $3 million of seeing its new aviation mechanics program take flight.
This is a smart program that will provide hands-on aviation mechanical training at the Raleigh County Memorial Airport.
New River President Bonny Copenhaver said she and the school have been working in partnership with the New River Gorge Regional Development Authority and the airport for the past three years on the new school. New River, itself, has allocated $1.4 million to the program. "We have purchased two planes already and several pieces of equipment so we will continue to use this money to purchase equipment for the program," Copenhaver said.
Other agencies, in addition to the commission, have contributed to the program as well, including the West Virginia Council for Community and Technical College System, the American Electric Power Foundation, the federal government and other investors.
We are certain they all see this as a wise investment. We do — with a big thumbs up.
