To the Editor:

Just when we thought things were going well — it’s deja vu for the Town of Berne Highway Department as the dynamic duo is at it again. There's a saying that all politics is local, and I might add, ugly.

As we all know, Randy Bashwinger, a Republican, was elected Town of Berne Highway Superintendent. Bashwinger took office Jan. 1, 2015. The Berne Town Board members are all Democrats.

During Bashwinger's first year on the job he looked at the town highway department with a fresh set of eyes. He made changes and incorporated a new work schedule to address inefficiencies in the town highway operation.

Bashwinger soon locked horns with the dynamic duo; town board member Joe Golden and Supervisor Kevin Crosier. You remember them from previous Altamont Enterprise news stories. The same dynamic duo who interfered, harassed, and undermined former Town Highway Superintendent Ken Weaver. The same dynamic duo who arranged the clandestine purchase of the Game Farm Road property with no information to Berne residents. More on that fiasco later.

The dynamic duo did everything they could to thwart and undermine Weaver's authority. Their approach with new Highway Superintendent Bashwinger apparently has been no different.

Now at this point, I would like to digress for a moment. When our Creator made us, he gave us a conscience, a kind of moral compass; occasionally as we go through life, we come across people who act as if they don't have one.

It would have been great if the Good Lord had also included some other features. As example, if a person were telling a lie or misrepresenting the facts or twisting the truth, something unique and startling would suddenly occur such as their nose growing much like Pinocchio's or their hair abruptly catching fire, immediately calling attention to the falsehood. Just imagine sitting at home watching an elected official on TV or maybe you’re sitting in the audience at a small town hall meeting when the elected official's nose suddenly starts to grow or their hair abruptly catches on fire instantly indicating that they were telling a lie, misrepresenting the facts, or twisting the truth.

Now pick up The Altamont Enterprise of March 17, 2016 from your coffee table and read the story on the front page about the town of Berne highway workers who were laid off. As you read, try to imagine whose nose is growing or whose hair is on fire.

One would think that a new elected official would, at the very least, receive some measure of cooperation from a sitting supervisor and town board. No partisan politics? Ha! Keep dreaming!

At the direction of first-year, hands-on Highway Superintendent Bashwinger, equipment and supplies were inventoried. Old, worn-out, and unused equipment was sold via auctions, bringing revenue to the town, and, thanks to Randy, the town of Berne received $176,000 in CHIPs money from the office of State Senator George Amedore. Senator Amedore supports the Consolidated Local Street and Highway Improvement Program, CHIP, and was pleased to see Berne Highway Superintendent Randy Bashwinger and some town highway employees attending a 2015 CHIP highway advocacy event.

One of the inefficiencies Bashwinger noted was that the five-day, eight-hour work week for town highway employees was not suitable considering the topography of the town, the location of the town garage, and the distances the men traveled to maintain and repair nearly 80 miles of town roads.

As reported by The Enterprise, Bashwinger's changes to remedy the inefficiencies included a four-day, 10-hour work week schedule for part of the year, which he claimed not only improved efficiency and productivity, it improved employee morale, provided greater flexibility and utilization of manpower, and reduced wear and tear on equipment and lowered costs.

Bashwinger's changes nettled board member Golden and town Supervisor Crosier. The dynamic duo took issue with the four-day, 10-hours-a-day schedule, claiming that the town employees and Bashwinger merely wanted three-day weekends. If you believe the dynamic duo, I have a bridge in Brooklyn that I would like to sell you.

According to the Enterprise article, when Bashwinger left for a planned vacation on a recent Thursday afternoon, Friday evening Crosier, apparently seeking to force town employees to bend to his will, went to the homes of town highway employees Peter Becker and Josh Gebe and informed each of them that they were on layoff and that they would remain on layoff  until they renounced the four-day, 10-hour-a day work week and agreed to return to the five-day, 8-hour work week. Only under those terms could they come back to work on the town payroll.

As the Enterprise headline reads, Gebe, a father of five children, was in shock over Crosier’s actions. When word spread of the supervisor’s heavyhanded and unreasonable actions, Gebe wasn't the only person shocked.

The Altamont Enterprise’s well-documented article reveals that Crosier's failure to follow procedure, his abrupt spur-of-the-moment layoff of two town employees without proper notice, triggered the town’s highway contract clause entitling each man to receive 80 hours of pay. At $19 per hour that comes to $1,520 per man, a total of $3,040. A completely avoidable action on Crosier's part, and an unnecessary and needless expense for the town of Berne treasury. Since it was Crosier’s blunder, he should have to pay the $3,040, not Berne taxpayers.

In the newspaper article, Crosier comes across as an arrogant, mean-spirited schoolyard bully using his position as town supervisor to intimidate and threaten town employees in a backdoor attempt to harass and undermine highway Superintendent Bashwinger's authority. Crosier’s despicable tactic while certainly unethical may have been illegal and needs to be investigated.

His behavior and conduct is not what would be expected from a town official toward town employees. To his credit, Bashwinger comes across as a thoughtful planner with common sense, not prone to making rash abrupt decisions; he works well with the highway department crew and has been shown to be capable of making good use of the resources he is responsible for as the town’s highway superintendent.

As reported in the newspaper, Crosier emphatically states that Bashwinger is his guy, that Bashwinger is the man who can bring efficiency to the highway department.

If there is the tiniest grain of truth to Crosier's words, he will demonstrate it by immediately placing the laid-off workers, Becker and Gebe, back on the town payroll, and provide Bashwinger the funds necessary for him to do the work town residents elected him to do.

Surely the other town board members must realize the supervisor’s behavior casts a dark shadow not only upon them but the entire town. Will they assert themselves and speak up? The town board members are reminded that their loyalties and obligations are supposed to be dedicated to the best interests of town residents including town employees, and not the town supervisor.

Robert J. Motschmann III

Berne

Editor’s note: On Friday, March 18, Berne Supervisor Kevin Crosier offered the two laid-off highway department employees their jobs back; highway Superintendent Randy Bashwinger said they were both back at work on Monday. See related editorial.