Employees must receive a score of 60 or better on the core competence section of the county’s performance appraisal to be eligible for the merit raise. Tena Swann, the union president at the Care Facility, doesn’t exactly trust the performance-based system, but said since that isn’t the only avenue for people to get raises, they agreed.
“It wasn’t an easy thing, period,” she said. “Would you like your employer evaluating you and the person next to you trying to evaluate them the same. I don’t know that I really am convinced, but after a certain point you’re just like, hmm, whatever. It’s not the only component. That’s part of the raise yes, but that’s not all of it, and that’s what I think made the difference.”
Care Facility Administrator Chuck Demidovich said the only other major change to the contract, which is retroactive to Oct. 9, 2015, is they now have a three-year instead of a two-year pact. He said they took a hard line on the performance issue. The county commissioners have made it crystal clear performance pay is their policy, and they want it followed.
“We made it very clear in the negotiations that performance had to be part of it to get a contract,” he said. “We kind of worked where they were guaranteed a certain amount but also performance affected the rest. It was kind of a compromise.”
David Fehr, director of development and planning for the county, said this is the first time his union employees agreed to merit raises, and he was happy with the result.
“I think the commissioners were more than fair with the employees, based on what everybody else got,” he said. “They are all seasoned inspectors, and they do a good job. Even though they are in the union, they do what needs to be done to get the job done. So for example with Liberty Center, they worked a ton of overtime, even maybe when the union contract says they weren’t required to do, to get that project done, and I think the commissioners recognized that.”
Earlier this month the commissioners ratified new deals with the sheriff's deputies and their supervisors. The new contract gives deputies a two percent increase in each of the three years and supervisors a 1.5 percent increase. There is also a quasi performance pay component.
Those contracts also include a half percent increase if the employee completes four extra training assignments, participates in the annual physical fitness program and joins the county’s wellness program. Union Chief Sgt. Jeff Gebhart said he doesn’t view the half percent incentive as performance pay because it is voluntary and it doesn’t effect base pay.
The commissioners disagreed. Commissioner Don Dixon said the contract add-on is just the beginning of more in-roads on the merit pay quest.
“In my opinion, it opens the door for us to show the FOP that it’s to both of our benefit,” he said. “It works in the private sector, and it’s actually building up faith and trust between the two parties.”
The first union to agree to some form of performance pay was the union in Court Clerk Mary Swain’s office in January 2015. They are currently negotiating a new deal.
The social workers in Children Services, after a two-year, extremely tough negotiation and a three-week strike, acquiesced. The deal, forged last Spring includes a two percent increase to the minimum and maximum salaries on their pay ranges, and the social workers received one- to three-percent pay hikes based on their performance. A two percent pool of money was available for raises. The salary ranges get another 2 percent boost this year and workers will again be eligible for merit pay.
Commissioners T.C. Rogers said he is glad their union employees are coming around.
“I think it’s fortunate that we’re able to get our employees to buy into what we’re trying to do,” he said. “If you are providing a better service then you should get paid for it and not just get paid for being there.”
About the Author