Dayton Chronicle - Your Hometown News Source

DAYTON–Ashley Strickland, Columbia County Emergency Management Director, is looking for ways to attract employees to work for the County. He reported that every employee on the salary schedule in his department, which is basically 100% funded by external grants (and not from "current expense"), was all on the same "step" within the schedule, and those employees had not been given any sort of step raise or merit raise. There was no mechanism in place to give any type of merit or longevity raise.

He wants to provide ways to incentivize employees to stay in their jobs longer. Strickland presented a method for this. Using the basic "five steps" on the salary schedule, he added four steps of 1% below that. He stressed that an employee who had been in the job six years and an employee who has been in the job two weeks were getting the same pay It was mentioned that other department managers agreed there was no specific system for how employees are advanced through the five steps. For Strickland's department, it is difficult to plan for these raises when the payroll is funded from grants and not current expense.

Commissioner Michael Talbott was concerned this would create a "two tier" system with Emergency Management employees getting one type of pay scale and the other county employees on a different pay scale; and whether or not that was fair.

County Auditor Anne Higgins recommended a separate payroll schedule, not within the County Salary Schedule, that is totally grant funded.

Commissioner Charles Amerein liked the idea of the merit raises for longevity but agreed it would have to be a completely separate schedule.

Strickland reported that Emergency employees do not think it is fair that (for example) County Public Works employees get to work a "4/10" schedule (four days of ten hours) in the summer when children are out of school. Emergency employees have very different jobs and sometimes must work nights, weekends, and holidays.

County Auditor Higgins further recommended that the salary schedule should be a one percent jump between the ranges, and use the "five steps" as a merit increase.

Historically, Emergency Management has not followed the step increases, but instead has given only Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) increases. The salary schedule needs to be a merit schedule. Commissioner Amerein wondered if the COLA raises were calculated on "base" salary (without the step" or on actual salary. County Auditor Higgins clarified that a COLA raise is applied to every salary in the step on the schedule. Under the merit system, more control could be given to the directors for giving merit raises.

Stickland's goal is to show new hires that once they are fully trained, there will be a salary increase to go with it as well as longevity raises. The essential question is: "What keeps people here?" (Other than Dayton being a great place to live). Employees want to know that if they stay with their jobs, there will be raises.

Stickland and Higgins further clarified that this is a proposal for next year as it is too late to implement this plan this year. Higgins stressed that it is important to have the scale in place, for payroll processing; and whether or not one gets to the steps is dependent upon director's evaluation. Strickland further added that there has been a County Engineer position open since before he was hired (late spring 2019).

There is a reason, and the reason comes down to pay, benefits, and quality of life. The quality of life here is great, so why aren't people coming here? Because it all comes down to pay and benefits! A new employee wants to know that even if the starting pay is a little lower than they would get elsewhere, that there are raises in place to incentivize people to stay. Right now, that cannot be shown.

It was also pointed out that "current expense" is always there, but when grant money runs out, there is no more job. It was also pointed out that if the grant programs were discontinued, the state cannot keep the money, it must be distributed. The Commissioners advised Strickland to continue working with Higgins to develop this pay scale and get it reflected in the policy book.