From the Desk of Teri Nigretto
Board President
Good evening EWUA Members.
I have been asked by EWUA’s voting Members to provide additional clarification of the terms under which Dan Burke was awarded a payment of accrued vacation pay in 2022.
Sadly, this payment has come to symbolize a set of false assumptions coming from RecallWater’s corner which they claim – also falsely – reveals “inaction” on our part to hold Dan Burke “accountable” for feeling he was entitled to the compensation.
Let me be perfectly clear: The amount of money in question was neither “noncompliant” nor “excessive.” It was part of Dan Burke’s authorized salary and benefits.
Dan was not aware of this payroll detail until two of our consulting payroll officers, Dan Vierthaler and Jamie White, flagged it during the integration of our payroll records into Caselle, our new enterprise software package.
Dan initially made no claim, but instead asked Vierthaler and White to verify his eligibility under two seemingly conflicting sections of the EWUA’s Employee Handbook. Ultimately, they agreed that Dan could cash the award before the close of the fiscal year.
Our Board of Directors reviewed the situation in detail. All of us came to realize that the language in the Employee Handbook was subject to interpretation. Because of this, we decided to join with Dan in signing an amicable agreement so that the EWUA could not be held liable for incorrectly denying the award, nor could Dan Burke be held liable for accepting an inappropriate payment. That agreement is final and binding.
The misleading distortions of the facts surrounding this situation are doing great harm to your water utility.
Please read Dan Vierthaler’s letter in detail – it exposes the essential fallacy of RecallWater’s case against your Board of Directors.
Teri Nigretto
Board President
Eastsound Water
Dan-Vierthaler-EWUA-Board-Letter-06.20.2023