The 2018 Salary ordinance for the City of Plymouth was on the agenda for 2nd and 3rd reading Monday night, but the Mayor Senter call for a motion to bring the ordinance before the council it died for lack of a motion.
Mayor Senter asked for discussion and guidance from council members on their wishes for the 2018 salary ordinance.
Councilman Jeff Houin said while the proposed ordinance had a goal to bring employees to the external mid-point of the salary survey. There are some exceptions. With the salary increase already approved mid year for police and fire, most of them are now above the mid-point. He noted a couple of other positions within the city that are also above the average the Mayor is looking to reach. Houin said the proposed salary ordinance moves every employee in the Clerk/Treasurer’s office to the external-high point instead of the mid-point. Houin said, “I just can’t justify raising the authorized salary for every employee in one department only to the high point while we are only bringing the entire remainder of city employees up to the external mid point.”
Bill Walters, a council member that served on the study committee that recommended the salary increases said the increase this year was to bring those positions up to where they should be for 2017. While nearly every other position in the city would see a raise in the proposed 2018 salary ordinance, emergency services would not. He said, “In order to maintain the level of pay for police and fire we should consider a small increase.”
Councilman Gary Cook said, “I feel if we don’t do anything with emergency services with this salary ordinance, everything we did on that committee was for nothing. We need to keep pace.” Councilman Cook said, “I understood that the survey was to be used as a measuring stick, not as the gospel.”
Councilman Shawn Grobe had two basic concerns. He said, “Coming from the private sector and looking at increases of 5% to 20% over almost every position, nobody gets raises like that without getting promoted or moving or switching roles.” He continued, “Being able to look one of my constituents in the eye and tell them that we have chosen to give raises that nobody will ever see without making some drastic change…I can’t do it.” The second concern he said was, “adding this much to the payroll crowds out other services.”
Cook motioned a $1,000 across the board raise which didn’t receive a second so it died. He then offered a motion of a 3% raise for all full time employees which also didn’t receive a second.
Councilman Don Ecker offered to chair a committee to meet with the Clerk/Treasurer and HR Director and do an analysis on a percentage and see how it looks. He said, “We did this (emergency service raises) so we would be competitive in the market, but at the same time we can’t just go out and give absorbent increases all at once.” Council members Shiloh Fonseca and Bill Walters also agreed to participate on the committee.
The committee will have to work quickly because the salary ordinance must be in place by October to meet the state deadlines.
