Town of Ulster

TRANSFER OF OVERSIGHT: ULSTER TRANSFER STATION PROBLEMS CITED:

Town Board members on Monday gave control of the town transfer station to Supervisor Nick Woerner after finding that dumping has been allowed without permits and employees have called in sick more than half the Saturdays this year.

The responsibility for the transfer station was taken from the town Highway Department in 4-1 vote during a Town Board meeting with Councilman Craig Artist as the lone opposition.

Following the meeting, Councilman Rocco Secreto said at least one of the transfer station's two employees has called in sick 20 of the past 34 Saturdays.

"They're covered (under union contract) but now we have to call somebody in at time-and-a-half for overtime," he said. "They also get two meal tickets, that's $20, on top of that $220 per day to work. That's big bucks we're losing."

Officials said an inspection by board members on Saturday found that residents were arriving without a permit.

"We sold 10 coupon books (for accepting bags with trash) and 10 permits," Secreto said. "We sold over $500 in one day. If we weren't there they would have never gotten sold because those people would have just shown up with no permit or no coupon."

Secreto said taking the authority away from town Highway Superintendent Donald "Mac" Tinnie Jr. will make employees take the job seriously.