Environment Commissioner Saves City Budget, Ends Hiring Abuses

By Kevin Robinson in News on Nov 3, 2009 4:20PM

Mayor Daley's Environment Commissioner Suzanne Malec-Mckenna told the press yesterday that she would accept a one-day suspension for alleged hiring abuses related to a contractor in her department. The city inspector general recommended the suspension, as well as the firing of one of her deputies, who is accused of lying to investigators about the matter. “If that’s the recommendation, I’ll take the recommendation,” Malec-McKenna said Monday.

The jobs game has been going on at City Hall for well over three decades now. (At least officially). They're so bad, in fact, that a federal judge appoints a monitor to oversee what goes on at City Hall with respect to the hiring guidelines established in the Shakman Decrees. The funny thing about Malec-Mckenna agreeing so readily to take a one-day suspension (and hang her deputy out to dry) is that it solves two problems for the city all in one fell swoop. Chicago's had problems complying with the Shakman Decrees for decades, and now the mayor is chopping away at city services and work days in a desperate attempt to balance the gaping budget hole. So listen up, Daley, here's the plan: all of your managers agree to fall on their swords, take a few days off for all the hiring shenanigans they've been involved in over the years, whether we know about them or not, and we get them to agree to can all their deputies, too. Then you can go to Wayne Anderson and tell him that you're taking hiring abuses very seriously, right before you address the city, declaring a balanced budget for 2010 without those pesky furlough days!