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‘ UNCLE MARK : CAO calls for scrapping of Winshare | MARK WHALEY â€" campaign 2000 | Volunteers are needed to help elect for Regional Council for Waterloo WANTS YOU DONATIONS GRATEFULLY ACCEPTED | > A Stiteh in Tims callt 886â€"4774 OKTOBERFEST CRAFT #4 But the program started to raise the ire of some taxâ€" payers when 17 per cent of the eligible savings accrued was paid back to city workâ€" ers. The program paid out $262,000 in bonuses in the first year and has since paid out $938,000 to city workers. The majority of the 12 delegations who attended the public meeting in counâ€" cil chambers Monday night Things like building perâ€" mits weren‘t included, but savings in every area includâ€" ing how arena staff made ice were put towards the surâ€" plus. _ That _ generated $5,320,000 in savings for the city since the program was put into place in 1996. More than $4,382,000 of that was returned to the city‘s coffers as part of the Community Winshare porâ€" tion of the program and went to such councilâ€"directâ€" ed projects as reducing municipal _ taxes, _ roads repair and reserves and other community projects. Continued from page 1 CcONnESTOGA _ _ MALL 18 MHEF‘OX TaDUoObs «/. handâ€"made goods x from artisans around the country! He said city employees should look for better effiâ€" ciencies as a matter of course and not as part of a bonus program, adding that citizens of Waterloo have a right to expect dedicated service regardless of Winshare. "Give me my money back," said Robert Hurst, a retired employee of the local public school board. After all, they said, it‘s all taxpayers‘ money that goes to fund city programming, so it was taxpayers‘ money that was also going to fund these bonuses. was opposed to the bonus program. Nine of the 12 felt all the savings should be returned to taxpayers. Those sentiments were "Give me back my money." â€" Robert Hurst Wrerloo taxpayer "Winshare doesn‘t disâ€" tribute budget surpluses, it only distributes earned surâ€" pluses," said Gratl. _ "The savings are paid for by what is earned by the employees." One of the voices in supâ€" port of the program was Roger Gratl, a volunteer member _ of _ the . city‘s Committee on Municipal Productivity and Revenue Enhancement (COMPARE). Gratl also had initial reservaâ€" tions about the program but he said it‘s helped change the mindset of local municiâ€" pal employees from one of spending to one of saving. But the overwhelming majority of speakers at the "You have no right to waste taxpayers‘ dollars," said Uberig to a packed council chambers. "If you have a surplus it means you are overâ€"taxing us. If you are overâ€"taxing us, reduce the tax rate." echoed by Joyce Uberig, a former Conestoga College administrator, who called the Winshare program, "A ripoff of the taxpayer." Uberig said that city employees should be doing the job they were hired to do without being given the extra money to do it. Stockie said city staff has taken too much verbal abuse from the public, so much so that they‘ve become public > target The city of Waterloo‘s chief â€" administrative officer Tom Stockie has suggested council do away the controversial Winshare program which rewards city â€" staff for â€" saving revenue. What do you think? Council decided not to make a final decision on Winshare until a final staff report is submitted on Oct. 16. What do you think? Should _ Winshare â€" be scrapped. Call us at 886â€" 2830, ext. 220, fax us at 886â€"9383 or eâ€"mail us at wchronicle@sentex.net. Please leave your phone number and spell your name. Your response may be published in next week‘s Chronicle. Even if Winshare is shelved, Stockie said city employees will continue to strive to find cost savings and efficiencies for Waterloo‘s citizens. "I think the corporate culture we developed will continue to push our employees to be efficient and deliver high quality serâ€" vices to this community with or without Winshare," he rather than public serâ€" "The information was there for some people and they chose not to recognize that with their opinions, and we‘re not going to take those away from them," said Tom Stockie, after the meeting. "At least the people who spoke tonight were fairly professional in their comâ€" ments. Unfortunately some of the written comments and telephone comments we received were totally inappropriate." meeting, including more than 20 letters, eâ€"mails and phone calls included in the information package, remained _ against _ the Winshare program.