GREENVILLE, N.C.- A new state audit reveals a former government employee was giving himself raises during his time as director of the Pitt-Greenville Airport. We first brought you the story back in February about Jim Turcotte who's making more money in retirement than most working people make.
State Auditor Beth Wood says the Pitt-Greenville Airport Authority made its self-imposed policies very clear: no one gets a merit raise without a performance evaluation backing it up and no one gets a cost-of-living adjustment without the board's approval.
"And yet you've got this executive director who's just taking these liberties and nobody is questioning anything that he does and he's doing stuff that's never been approved by the board,” said Wood.
In her 30-page audit Wood says the board wasn't doing its job of overseeing former airport director Jim Turcotte. She says he was allowed to develop his own employment contract- including unauthorized bonuses. The audit found in his last four years as director- Turcotte made nearly $72,000 in selling back vacation days.
With only 20 full-time employees working here at the Pitt-Greenville Airport in 2009, Turcotte was making more than $283,000- topping the salaries for top administrators at both Charlotte-Douglas and Raleigh-Durham International, airports with full-time staff ranging from 250 to more than 300 employees.
In february, pitt county manager scott elliott told eyewitness news nine turcotte deserved his $173,000 annual pension paycheck. "What has been done to the airport over the last 30 years has brought us from little league status almost to, to major league,” he said.
But now that the state audit shows he is bringing in more than $15,000 a month in retirement, he's not so sure. "But in my mind that still doesn't justify the compensation package that he received in the end,” said Elliott.
Wood says it's nothing new. "Boards get complacent with very talented executive directors or finance officers when in reality they should be the ones asking the tough questions,” she told Eyewitness News Nine.
Beth Wood says it's up to the current Airport Authority to approve Turcotte's pay increases from his 30-year run as director. But she says the money he made through selling back vacation and sick days is not in compliance with state policy and it will be up to the State Treasurer whether he can keep that money. The Authority has already agreed to revise its personnel and payroll policies.
Source: http://www2.wnct.com
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