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PR consultant earned $295 an hour to champion doomed labor contract
November 3rd, 2009, 5:00 am · 18 Comments · posted by Teri Sforza, Register staff writer
It may be worth noting that the fee paid to attorneys working death penalty cases is some $150 per hour.
Far better, then, to be the strategic communications consultant hired by the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, to help shepherd tentative labor contracts to fruition.
Lichtenstein & Associates - doing business as Marathon Communications - inked a deal with Met in July that pays it $295 per hour, “plus necessary expenses at Consultant’s actual cost without mark-up.” The mission: “To provide strategic communications consulting and counsel in support of Metropolitan’s labor agreements.” (See contract below.)
Marathon pulled down $25,000 in July, and $17,026 in August. (No billings yet for September.) The deal, for up to $100,000, runs through next year.
It may also be worth noting that the labor contracts Marathon was to champion to the public were withdrawn from consideration, after Met’s board signaled its displeasure last month. (The contracts included a pay raise of up to 23 percent over five years, and a pension hike of 25 percent forever. Board members - from SoCal cities and water districts - couldn’t vote for that in the midst of recession.)
Marathon Communications’ job was not to simply respond factually to questions about the contracts, but to mount something of a campaign in their favor. To wit: “Consultant shall provide a strategic plan and timeline to announce recently negotiated agreements, assist in writing and producing collateral materials including but not limited to: message points, project information fact sheets, FAQs, press releases, direct mail, and op-ed articles to implement the strategic plan.”
Op-ed articles?!
Marathon was needed because it would have been a conflict for Met’s own public information department to handle questions about the contracts, since its employees would have directly benefited from said contracts, Met officials said. (One could argue, of course, that Marathon benefited as well.)
BIGGEST PAYCHECK
Anyway, Marathon has made only a fraction of the money pulled down by Met consultant Agreement Dynamics, which referees labor negotiations from a kinder, gentler “interest-based bargaining” standpoint. Agreement Dynamics has been paid nearly $300,000 through July - and will be working for many more months as the negotiations are reopened to find a way around that controversial pension hike.
SMALLEST PAYCHECK
It could be argued that Met’s lowest-paid consultant on the labor contract front is the one that provided a most vital service: Trying to determine what the heck the new contracts would actually cost the district over the long haul.
Details, details. Actuarial firm Bartel & Associates earned $17,795 for work in July and August. (Again, no billings for September yet.)
You can see the Marathon contract here (marathon); and the Bartel contract here (bartel), and the consultant billings to date here (met-billings-to-date).
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Great job Teri. I wish this sort of reporting had been going on for years.
This is nothing new with Met. I just hope that with the attention this has brought, that something will change.
So we have yet another scam with the public unions, to go with the hudreds of other scams being perpetrated by public employee unions, no suprise there.
So, the question is this;
WHEN ARE WE GOING TO GO TO THE BALLOT AND END THIS FRAUD???????????
Because you know OUR elected leaders (the ones who created this mess with the public unions) are not going to end it, not as long as they continue to be bought off by the public unions.
something tells me it is going to be sooner than later, especially if the economy continues to tank. It has been brewing for years and is now boiling. The Howard Jarvis clan will ride in shortly.
Been saying that for years and no one has stepped up. Republican, democrat, makes no difference. Even the independents are can be swayed by those who can help them get elected. Regardless of the policy. Government became a business for itself and not the people. The government is broken. End of story, end of the USA.
You wingnuts have been predicting the fall of the USA for at least 40 years — maybe more. It’s still here and public employees are still getting their pay and benefits, including pensions. The reason nobody is stepping up to take on your cause is because there are only about 10 people who share your world view, and they’re all blogging here.
Skippingdog says:
November 3, 2009 at 4:13 pmYou wingnuts have been predicting the fall of the USA for at least 40 years — maybe more. It’s still here and public employees are still getting their pay and benefits, including pensions
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LOL, I am throwing a PARTY when the pension fund collapses and Fido starts yapping like the clown dog he is.
And yes Fido, you’re the first pup I am inviting!
PR firms like that give outher PR practioners/firms a bad name. Its unfortunate that they used it as a cash cow rather than being honest with their client and stating that the plan of attack wasn’t going to work. Some companies will do anything for a buck and I am sure if they review the detailed activity reports they will find that the firm probably didn’t earn half that money and simply padded the bill. That’s why I am a one-person PR show - lthere is no pressure to pad bills or do unethical things as there is inside today’s PR firms/agencies.
Shameful!
Teri -
It is very frustrating that you use deception so often to make your point - you can just speak the truth without embellishing and do a much better job.
A public defender may be paid $150/ hour, but a good attorney is paid much more than this PR firm is paid.
Your deceptive way of writing is more egregious than the things you write about.
actually ‘be truthful’ you can get an excellent attorney for under $295.00. try again.
be truthful says:
A public defender may be paid $150/ hour, but a good attorney is paid much more than this PR firm is paid.
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Hey trough feeder, in case you never graduated the 3rd grade-death row inmates do not have money and cannot pay for a “good attorney”, they are given public defenders or private attorneys and if private attorneys they are paid $150 an hour.
Another torugh feeder lie smacked down.
These consulting firms are alot like vultures lined up on the fence waiting to pick off whatever meat is left on the taxpayer’s bones after the unions, politicians and gobblement public employees finish their feast. hah. Parasites to the nth degree. They sit around in their think tanks dreaming up 2-bit phrases like ‘interest based bargaining’ so they can raise their fees another $100/hr. HAH! And they love it when the taxpayer comes out fighting because that gives even more purpose to their service. The last thing they would tell the hogs sitting on their side of the table is: “Ok, back off and decline pay or pension raises for at least the next two years. The taxpayer is in bad shape and pushing for more money at this time will just anger them and hurt your chances for future value in our collective bargaining process. It simply doesn’t look good when we try to fool the public into giving you more money when millions of them are losing their jobs, homes and life savings. Let’s do this smart and build good-will with the taxpayers so we can profit in the future”.
HAH. Nope. You will never hear them say this. WHY??? Because the unions would fire them and they wouldn’t get their $295/hr in blood money. That’s why.
They must really despise me for speaking the truth.
If anyone actually makes the effort to despise you, it’s just because you’re so damn obnoxious and self-indulgent. Otherwise, you’re only moderately dislikable.
Coming from you that’s a compliment.
Thanks!
hey observer,”sell crazy somewhere else,they are all stocked up here”!!! hah..
You never did like the truth, ntheoc. On any subject discussed here on the boards. The truth to you is like the crucifix is to dracula. You wouldn’t know the truth if your daddy beat you over the head with it. You see only what you want to see. You feel like Robin Hood riding in that big red truck and waving your flag. hah. In reality you are the wolf in sheep’s clothing. An invisible thief who always has your hand in the taxpayer’s pocket and the deeper you reach the more you justify it. hah. We got your number, sport.
ocb,the truth to you is like a big dose of narcan to a heroin addict,they just don’t like it..hah!! you put more spin on some of these topics than a dj on a record…hey i do not always disagree with you on the news headlines or the blog debates and i enjoy reading your stuff,it’s humerous at times but when i take a differen’t angle and post a comment you go on the attack..i bet you agree with me to on some topics but because of your hatred towards my proffession you won’t let yourself see the real facts most of the time..besides if everyone agreed with you,donk,blaze and the rest of the coocoo’s nest you would not be challenged and these debate blogs would be boring. hmmm it’s a nice morning let me see if your right,nope”THE SKY IS NOT FALLING”!!!!!!!! LOL……
ntheoc wrote:
…but when i take a differen’t angle and post a comment you go on the attack..i bet you agree with me to on some topics but because of your hatred towards my proffession you won’t let yourself see the real facts most of the time..”
As long as I’ve posted on this board you have never directed a kind or complimentary comment in my direction, Mr. Pot. And I have never seen a comment on a subject from you that deserved an accolade. Most of your posts simply endorse and seemingly attempt to justify stealing taxpayer’s money. And I don’t hate your profession. Other than maybe loan sharks, I don’t hate any profession. I just detest some people within certain professions who feel at ease ripping off the general public to the tune of millions of our taxpayers while portraying themselves as heroes and saviors. HAH! What load!! But the citizens are starting to catch on and see you folks for who you are. The tide is slowly turning. The the tsunami is only a few miles off shore. And I am amused that your refuse to recognize it. Keep that head of yours stuck in the gopher hole. We’ll tell you when it’s time to pull out and run! HAH!
O.K. Settle down boy’s, I believe the TOPIC was how much CONSULTANTS get paid,
Anyone?
Anyone?
Bueller?