Louisiana Officials

[SC Official]

I think the LHSAA should recruit volunteer fanboys to officiate.

In all seriousness, maybe the best thing that can happen is for this to cut into the regular season. The LHSAA will learn pretty quickly how important the officials are.

The appeal to pathos brought a chuckle from me.

[SCalScoreKeeper]

I know this is basketball but I'm looking at the Louisiana volleyball rate per crew and thinking yikes.Our brothers and sisters in Louisiana deserve a big time raise-I feel bad for the kids who are being held hostage in all this but these officials need to be valued as the professionals they are.I'm sorry but $37.50 an official for a varsity volleyball crew is just disgraceful and so are their rates in every sport.

[LouisianaDave]

You guys keep watching, I live in Baton Rouge and this past week has gotten nasty. Bonine ran his mouth Wed on radio, then came back on thursday and was more diplomatic. Sunday the LHSOA is having a board meeting then next Wednesday there is a meeting in New Orleans for ALL oficials statewide to hear what the next plan is.

Nevada Ref, can you tell me how you felt Bonine treated you. He said on the radio that he helped get yall a 4% raise. How true or instrumental was he in doing that?

[JRutledge]

I also would like to know why does the state have the legal right to set the price for the entire state? That seems to me to be one of the biggest issues here.

Peace

[RefAHallic]

Originally Posted by JRutledge

I also would like to know why does the state have the legal right to set the price for the entire state? That seems to me to be one of the biggest issues here.

Peace

Basically because it says so in their handbook. That's why being able to sign contracts with the schools is important. It make us trully independent contractors. The LHSAA also uses the handbook to say they can only consider raises at their annual January meeting. Get to the January meet then raises are soundly rejected. So, Officials have to hope and wait whole year to get it before LHSAA again. A walk out of some type has been the only tactic to motivate the LHSAA to approve raises. It's the only card to play with the way things are set up.

[Altor]

Originally Posted by RefAHallic

That's why being able to sign contracts with the schools is important. It make us trully independent contractors.

I don't know about that. Even that sounds like a collective bargaining agreement to me.

An independent contractor should be able to negotiate his/her own fee schedule with each customer.

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Altor

I don't know about that. Even that sounds like a collective bargaining agreement to me.

An independent contractor should be able to negotiate his/her own fee schedule with each customer.

In theory, sure. In practice, I can tell you what my conference pays and schools in the conference agree to pay that amount and not more, except for some very special exceptions. So either you take the $60 or you leave it (for example).

[Nevadaref]

Originally Posted by LouisianaDave

You guys keep watching, I live in Baton Rouge and this past week has gotten nasty. Bonine ran his mouth Wed on radio, then came back on thursday and was more diplomatic. Sunday the LHSOA is having a board meeting then next Wednesday there is a meeting in New Orleans for ALL oficials statewide to hear what the next plan is.

Nevada Ref, can you tell me how you felt Bonine treated you. He said on the radio that he helped get yall a 4% raise. How true or instrumental was he in doing that?

When I read that claim in the article I thought that it was an inaccurate spin on the situation.
The truth is that the NV contract has contained a provision from long before Bonine was the NIAA Exec Dir stipulating that the officials get the same raise as the state employees (max of 5%) one year later. I will have to check my records for the exact years, but I believe that NV state employees got a 4% raise in 2009, so the officials were contractually due the same for the 2010-2011 school year. During the Summer of 2010, Bonine (then going into his 2nd or 3rd year with the NIAA) asked the officials associations to postpone the raise due to the poor economic situation hitting the state until the financial situation improved. Graciously and foolishly (looking back on it) the officials associations agreed and a memorandum of understanding was drafted to that effect.
At the end of his 3rd year Bonine, then signed a new 3-year contract which contained approximately 16% raise for himself. (I believe his salary went from 115K to 135K.) That was four times what he had just asked the officials to forego! The officials thought "hey, what is that?" Therefore, during the Summer of 2013 the officials groups informed Bonine that they wanted their raise. He gave the same answer as he just gave the La officials that school budgets had already been made on June 1 and that it was too late to do it for the coming school year. He also said that he didn't have the power to grant such and that it would have to be voted upon by the school superintendents. Why the superintendents would possibly have the ability to vote on something that was already in a written contract seemed ludicrous to me. However, there was not enough support for strike/walkout amongst the association leaders. Most felt that $2 per game (4% of a $50 game fee) wasn't worth striking or going to court over. So the NIAA was duly informed that the officials would no longer be continuing with the memorandum of understanding to postpone their entitled 4% raise and that the rates would increase for the 2014-2015 school year (last year). Prior to that year the NIAA Board of Control and whatever superintendents were consulted approved the 4% increase, but they didn't really have any ability to not do so. Bonine departed in the Spring of 2015 shortly before his second three-year contract expired by giving 90 days notice to the NIAA Board of Control, a provision of his contract. It came out recently that in addition to his salary, he had been receiving a 10K vehicle allowance and an $1,800 longevity raise (an extra stipend for remaining in the position year after year). So he effectively hosed the officials out of a contractual raise for either four or five years through the ploys of "the schools don't have any money for a raise" and a delay tactic, while simultaneously taking a significant personal raise! During 2014-2015, he also gave each of the other NIAA staff salary raises of about $5,000, which amounts to a $20K annual expenditure. Meanwhile the NIAA has continued to cut back on the number of officials traveling for the postseason State tournaments and continues to only have four teams in those events, when it used to be eight in some sports, such as basketball. In my opinion, it is a farce for Bonine to claim that he got the NV officials a 4% raise. All that he did was orchestrate the postponement of it on behalf of the schools for several years. Most of us were glad to see him go. He tries to bully people and gets angry when he doesn't get his way. Seems that he just lost his cool on the radio down there.
The La association's position that their raise needs to come this year and not next is the right way to go as they are not falling for Bonine's delay tactic. I'm pleased to see that they have more strength than the NV people did in being willing to strike.
PS Both Bonine and his son were/are pro baseball players, so someone should suggest that he help the kids by going out and calling games himself. Of course, he's already on salary, so he wouldn't need to get any game fees.
PPS I'm sure that the guy who's just in this for the kids is making at least $150K down there as that state is far more populous then NV.

[SCalScoreKeeper]

What is happening right now is absolutely ridiculous but the schools have been asking for it for two decades by not giving these people raises.I would hate to be a senior student athlete caught in the middle of this.What Louisiana principals are saying is basically that any person off the street can come in and do a better job than a licensed official.That's insulting to me and I hope to all of us.The Louisiana principals value their teachers as professionals so why not us? I know as an HS official I don't officiate for the money however I do expect to be reasonably compensated for my afternoons work.Those rates at least to me do not qualify as reasonably compensated to me

[eyezen]

2. Regular Season - Varsity Game (3 person officiating crew)
Certified Rated Official …………….……............. $40.00 per official, per game
Approved Rated Official …………….….............. $32.00 per official, per game
Registered Rated Official ……………................. $30.00 per official, per game


uhm - no thanks

I make $50 plus a catered halftime spread running the playclock at FB games.

[OKREF]

Live in my state. There is no set fee for game officials in any sport. The schools hire the officials themselves, or in some cases in the metro areas they are given to an assignor, however the schools can pay whatever they want. Currently the going rate for 2 high school games is $120 for two person mechanics. $90-$100 for 3 person.

[SCalScoreKeeper]

OKREF-are schools responsible for their own Playoff assigning of officials or is the governing body involved?

[OKREF]

Originally Posted by SCalScoreKeeper

OKREF-are schools responsible for their own Playoff assigning of officials or is the governing body involved?

Every school makes the playoffs. The governing body assigns the teams into 3 team districts for the smaller classes and 2 team districts for larger. We have a double elimination playoff system. For the 3 team districts, if you lose the first game you are eliminated. For these districts the teams involved have a meeting and compile a list of officials ranked 1-15. The state then assigns 2 referees from those lists to the districts. After the district rounds all assignments are made by the state office.

[deecee]

He's a politician. He makes good money so what does he care. All he's good for, like most politicians, is heating up a room or venue. Anyone who believes him or think his intentions are altruistic I have a battery powered flashlight to sell you.

[Rich]

Originally Posted by Nevadaref

When I read that claim in the article I thought that it was an inaccurate spin on the situation.
The truth is that the NV contract has contained a provision from long before Bonine was the NIAA Exec Dir stipulating that the officials get the same raise as the state employees (max of 5%) one year later. I will have to check my records for the exact years, but I believe that NV state employees got a 4% raise in 2009, so the officials were contractually due the same for the 2010-2011 school year. During the Summer of 2010, Bonine (then going into his 2nd or 3rd year with the NIAA) asked the officials associations to postpone the raise due to the poor economic situation hitting the state until the financial situation improved. Graciously and foolishly (looking back on it) the officials associations agreed and a memorandum of understanding was drafted to that effect.
At the end of his 3rd year Bonine, then signed a new 3-year contract which contained approximately 16% raise for himself. (I believe his salary went from 115K to 135K.) That was four times what he had just asked the officials to forego! The officials thought "hey, what is that?" Therefore, during the Summer of 2013 the officials groups informed Bonine that they wanted their raise. He gave the same answer as he just gave the La officials that school budgets had already been made on June 1 and that it was too late to do it for the coming school year. He also said that he didn't have the power to grant such and that it would have to be voted upon by the school superintendents. Why the superintendents would possibly have the ability to vote on something that was already in a written contract seemed ludicrous to me. However, there was not enough support for strike/walkout amongst the association leaders. Most felt that $2 per game (4% of a $50 game fee) wasn't worth striking or going to court over. So the NIAA was duly informed that the officials would no longer be continuing with the memorandum of understanding to postpone their entitled 4% raise and that the rates would increase for the 2014-2015 school year (last year). Prior to that year the NIAA Board of Control and whatever superintendents were consulted approved the 4% increase, but they didn't really have any ability to not do so. Bonine departed in the Spring of 2015 shortly before his second three-year contract expired by giving 90 days notice to the NIAA Board of Control, a provision of his contract. It came out recently that in addition to his salary, he had been receiving a 10K vehicle allowance and an $1,800 longevity raise (an extra stipend for remaining in the position year after year). So he effectively hosed the officials out of a contractual raise for either four or five years through the ploys of "the schools don't have any money for a raise" and a delay tactic, while simultaneously taking a significant personal raise! During 2014-2015, he also gave each of the other NIAA staff salary raises of about $5,000, which amounts to a $20K annual expenditure. Meanwhile the NIAA has continued to cut back on the number of officials traveling for the postseason State tournaments and continues to only have four teams in those events, when it used to be eight in some sports, such as basketball. In my opinion, it is a farce for Bonine to claim that he got the NV officials a 4% raise. All that he did was orchestrate the postponement of it on behalf of the schools for several years. Most of us were glad to see him go. He tries to bully people and gets angry when he doesn't get his way. Seems that he just lost his cool on the radio down there.
The La association's position that their raise needs to come this year and not next is the right way to go as they are not falling for Bonine's delay tactic. I'm pleased to see that they have more strength than the NV people did in being willing to strike.
PS Both Bonine and his son were/are pro baseball players, so someone should suggest that he help the kids by going out and calling games himself. Of course, he's already on salary, so he wouldn't need to get any game fees.
PPS I'm sure that the guy who's just in this for the kids is making at least $150K down there as that state is far more populous then NV.

tl;dr -- He is a piece of garbage.