Few county workers paid fairly compared to other counties, departments, study finds

<p>For county workers to be paid what employees of other comparable counties are paid, Johnson County would have to spend $1.2 million more annually, and give low-paid employees an average raise of about 5.75%, a study revealed.</p><p>The Johnson County Board of Commissioners and Johnson County Council met this week to review the findings of a salary study the county authorized last year.</p><p>The commissioners approved funding for the study by Waggoner, Irwin, Scheele, a Muncie management consulting firm, in September 2019, to get an accurate picture of which—and to what extent—county employees are underpaid. The results of that study were revealed and discussed Wednesday at a joint special meeting of the boards.</p><p>The study, which cost taxpayers about $40,000, analyzed 279 county job descriptions, and compared each to its equal in other counties. The study cost an additional $155 each for 10 job descriptions that needed to be updated, said Shena Johnson, county attorney.</p><p>The study compared job descriptions of Johnson County workers to comparable jobs in counties that are similar to Johnson County, or within a commutable distance. The study also compared the salaries of similar jobs within the county.</p><p>The study found disparities both within the county and in comparison to other counties.</p><p>Some of the largest pay discrepancies can be found among similar jobs within the county. To bring the county’s underpaid employees up to par with their peers in other departments, the county would have to spend $483,327 annually, and give those underpaid workers a 2.86% raise, according to the study.</p><p>The most notable pay discrepancies among comparable positions are found among the county’s administrative staff. Pay varies widely between departments. For example, a coordinator at the Johnson County Animal Shelter makes $20,500, while an administrative assistant at the Johnson County Prosecutor’s Office makes $35,120.</p><p>In the most extreme case, there is a 70% pay gap among administrative positions, with the lowest paid being underpaid by $12,060, according to the study. Several others in this category, which includes administrative assistants, court reporters, office managers and paralegals, make $4,000 to $9,000 less than their counterparts in other departments.</p><p>There are also significant pay gaps between comparable positions in the professionals category, which includes appraisers, environmental health specialists, community corrections case managers and several department heads. It would cost the county an additional $184,000 a year to make up those differences, according to the study. Pay for employees in this category would need to increase about 9% to meet the midpoint of professionals in other counties.</p><p>Deputies in the offices of elected officials, such as the Johnson County Clerk’s Office and Johnson County Surveyor’s Office, are also largely underpaid, the study said.</p><p>The firm recommended the council either give deputies an average 8% raise to meet the median of their counterparts in other counties, or set their salaries at 85% of the elected official’s, which would mean an average raise of about 5%. If elected official salaries go up to meet the median, the second option would be an even larger increase.</p><p>Elected officials also make several thousand dollars less than their counterparts in other counties, with the largest pay differences existing for the commissioners, assessor and surveyor, according to the study. Each Johnson County commissioner is paid $28,390, while the median of the other counties surveyed is $44,203. Johnson County Assessor Mark Alexander makes about $10,000 less than he should, and Johnson County Surveyor Gregg Cantwell makes $21,000 less than he should, the survey said.</p><p>On the other end of the spectrum, non-ranked Johnson County sheriff’s deputies are paid about $1,800 more than the average, at $56,462. But ranked officers, such as lieutenants and majors, make a few hundred dollars less than the average of the other counties surveyed.</p><p>Both boards took the study under advisement and formed a committee to analyze the results and make recommendations for next year’s budget, forging a path forward. The committee will consist of commissioner Ron West, council members Pete Ketchum and Johnathan Myers, and department heads. Together, they will comb the results, examine the budget and make a joint recommendation about how to proceed.</p><p>In recent years, the council has allowed department heads to determine pay raises and amounts, either on a merit basis or to correct pay discrepancies such as these using their own research, officials said.</p><p>While several agreed department heads should keep this authority, others pointed out across-the-board increases will not fix pay discrepancies within the county. The hope is that the study will help department heads better determine where raises are needed, and how much, commissioner Brian Baird said.</p><p>Along with standard increases, West wants the committee to consider how merit-based raises could fit into a pay scale that prioritizes parity among similar positions.</p><p>Another consideration that was mentioned during the meeting was whether high-paid employees should have their salaries cut to fall closer in line with the average wages, West said.</p><p>But that’s not palatable, Baird said. Another idea would be to hold pay increases for higher paid employees until others catch up, he said.</p><p>With projected budget shortfalls in 2021 and 2022 due to the coronavirus pandemic, elected officials will have to balance the results of the study with the financial reality that a reduced tax revenue will bring, Myers said.</p><p>“This tool is a good start, and the internal analysis is something the committee has to consider,” he said. “The department heads and elected officials are going to have to keep it below some ceiling that we set to keep our current conservative outlook.”</p><p>The committee is expected to make a recommendation by August 10, which will mark the council’s first public meeting to discuss next year’s budget.</p>