April 30th, 2011
LA Times Editors: Big pension in little Salinas
By the Los Angeles Times editorial board: Yet another local government agency in California is under fire for the seemingly outsized compensation paid to one of its employees. This time the spotlight is on the Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System and its recently retired chief executive, Samuel Downing. The controversy isn’t Downing’s $150,000 annual pension as much […]
April 29th, 2011
LA Times on SVMH CEO Sam Downing’s Outrageous Pension Payouts
It’s the story of the week: Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital CEO Sam Downing cashes out $4 million in pension benefits on the taxpayers’ dime, even while advocating that the hospital cut frontline caregivers’ jobs to boost its profitability. Read the full story in the Los Angeles Times.
April 29th, 2011
Monterey County Herald Editors: Downing’s retirement too much at bad time
By The Monterey County Herald Editorial Board: The board at Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System has hacked away at its expenses, cutting annual costs by more than $25 million. We can’t argue that operational reductions are probably in order at the hospital. We’ve all suffered under the cruel crush of the economy. We’ve all had […]
April 29th, 2011
Downing earned pay, SVMH says
Generous retirement plan draws heavy criticism By JIM JOHNSON Herald Staff Writer Posted: 04/29/2011 01:28:29 AM PDT Hospital district officials are defending Salinas Valley Memorial Healthcare System president and CEO Sam Downing’s retirement package, which includes millions in supplemental retirement compensation on top of an annual pension, and has drawn heavy criticism from union leadership. Downing, who […]