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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-20-1999 Regular Meeting (3) Page 1 REGULAR MEETING COMMISSION CHAMBERS April 20, 1999 The meeting convened at 2:00 p.m., with the Honorable Bob Young, Mayor, presiding. Present included the Hons. Beard, Bridges, H. Brigham, J. Brigham, Colclough, Handy, Kuhlke, Mays, Powell, and Shepard. Also present were Ms. Bonner, Clerk of Commission; Mr. Oliver, Administrator; and Mr. Wall, County Attorney. THE INVOCATION WAS GIVEN BY THE REVEREND MANNING. THE PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE WAS RECITED. - - EXCERPT OF MEETING - - CLERK:Item 43: Motion to approve 1999 employee salary increases to be effective with the pay period commencing October 9, 1999 (checks distributed October 22, 1999) with the exception of the Department Directors' whose compensation increase will be effective the next pay period following Commission's approval within the following guidelines: (A) 1.5% cost of living increases to all regular full-time employees employed with Augusta-Richmond County on or before September 30, 1998, including the indexing of compensation brackets; (B) An allocation of funds equal to 1.5% of each Department's ARC payroll to be used for pay for performance increases for regular full-time employees. This is to be distributed based on their job performance as recommended by each department director and approved by the Administrator; (C) An allocation of funds equal to 5% of all Directors' compensation to increase Department Directors' compensation as determined by the Administrator based on their job performance. MR. KUHLKE:Mr. Mayor, I'd like to make a motion that this particular item be amended whereby the department directors' change in salary concur with that of the other employees of the county, which would be October 9th, and checks would be distributed on October the 22nd. Second. MR. SHEPARD: We have a motion and a second. Let's see, MAYOR YOUNG: Mr. Bridges, you were first. I wondered if the maker of the motion MR. BRIDGES: would--if he's including as department directors those that work for the Commission as well as the Mayor. Everybody. MR. KUHLKE: Page 2 MR. MAYS:Mr. Mayor, I'd like to make a substitute motion, and I'm hoping it hears a second. I'll be very brief with it. I'm going to be probably as redundant as I was, I guess, when I came out of the hospital the last time, so--I came out the wreck last Saturday night, so I'm back again out of the hospital again hoping that we can deal with some of the things that we've been talking about in finally bringing some closure to some of these debated salaries in reference to particularly departmental heads. I've sat and I've watched us, and this is only personal opinion, lose employees, particularly in a couple of cases recently with departmental head people. I've watched us on the same parallel basis go with new hires. I've watch us go with hires that have been within the mid range while we've even debated some of the things that we've been dealing with on an entry level for others. I think you could go down and maybe have a wish list of what all of us think might be important and where we may rank those things. But I am greatly concerned, particularly with what we may debate in Item 43A, and I'm going to make the substitute motion on 43. And regardless of what we deal with with 43A, I think that we need to deal with getting the situation up or down today in a vote of how we deal with inequity, one man's opinion, and I'm going to put it out for substitute vote--substitute motion, rather, of dealing with the consolidated government's situation of salary for the Fire Chief of this county. And I'm going to make a substitute motion that we approve Item 43 as is, with the amendment to it that we approve the salary of the Fire Chief, which would be at $80,000, and that's my substitute motion. I second that. MR. BEARD: Okay, we have a substitute motion and a MAYOR YOUNG: second. Any further discussion? Yes, Mr. Mayor, briefly on that one. My MR. MAYS: brief discussion on it is that this is the particular item that went before the Grievance Committee. It was one that was sent back for us to make the decision. It has been one that was recommended, and I sat in on that particular meeting, that the Administrator bring back to us. I think we need to take that monkey off the Administrator's back. It's been laying there, he's been looking for direction of this Commission to vote it up or down. We understand the politics of that, I'm not going to be out on that limb, but it's one that the committee that heard it in terms of hearing the grievance strongly recommended that we deal with correcting it. They did not set a figure in terms of where we correct it, and the only thing that I'm putting in that motion is that we put a number with the correction. We're talking about who we're Page 3 losing, who we're bringing in, and I think that in that area of public service and how we deal with professional leadership in terms of one of the largest departments in this county is important. And some may say, well, why start there and you're not dealing with the others. Quite frankly, let's face it, it's probably going to be the most controversial. I'd rather deal with it first. Maybe it shouldn't be because of this importance, but unfortunately it is. And I think we can deal with the question of how we deal with the other lettered organizations, EMA and EMS, at some different time, but I think the correction needs to be made at some point and put to rest, up or down, how we deal with the Fire Chief in this city and in reference to that salary. Thank you, Mr. Mays. Mr. Powell? MAYOR YOUNG: Yes. I guess I need a little clarification MR. POWELL: from Mr. Oliver here. Mr. Mays has thrown out a figure of $80,000 in this one instance for the Fire Chief. If you take the Fire Chief's salary as it is now and add the 5% to it--I'm not familiar with what the Fire Chief even makes, to be honest, and maybe I should keep up with all these details, but I don't. The Fire Chief's current compensation is MR. OLIVER: $72,116. Okay. Would you add 5% in there, Mr. MR. POWELL: Oliver? I know you were an accountant and-- Well, remember that the way this was worked MR. OLIVER: there was going to be a 5% incentive and a 1½% cost of living. Do you want me to put 5% to it or do you want me to put 6½ to it? 6½ to it. MR. POWELL: $76,803.54. MR. OLIVER: So it's close to 77,000? MR. POWELL: Yes, sir. MR. OLIVER: Mr. Mays, as the Chair understands your MAYOR YOUNG: motion, your substitute motion is to approve this as is, with setting the salary for the Chief at 80,000, so that would be the effective dates that are in the motion; is that correct? That's correct. MR. MAYS: Okay. Any further discussion on the MAYOR YOUNG: Page 4 substitute motion? Did you want to address the Commission? Please give us your name and address. My name is Ed O'Neal, 1014 Redbird Road. MR. O'NEAL: My wife is Tara O'Neal, who was Pam Tucker's assistant. We just walked in from the hospital, having a baby 24 hours ago. Congratulations. MAYOR YOUNG: Thank you. MR. O'NEAL: Boy or girl? MR. HANDY: A girl. MR. O'NEAL: Thank you. MR. HANDY: It sounds like to me she's losing her job MR. O'NEAL: today. No, that's--you're an item ahead. MAYOR YOUNG: You're an item ahead, but that's also not MR. OLIVER: an issue. That's not an issue today. MAYOR YOUNG: That wouldn't be a good present to give a MR. HANDY: new parent. And I had almost wished twins on you the MR. MAYS: other day. No, that doesn't have anything to do with that one at all. No, this is entirely different. All MAYOR YOUNG: right, we'll call the question on this. All in favor of the substitute motion--does anybody need it restated?--please vote aye. MR. BRIDGES, MR. J. BRIGHAM, MR. KUHLKE & MR. SHEPARD VOTE NO. MOTION CARRIES 6-4. Next item? MAYOR YOUNG: CLERK:Item 43A: Discuss/approve placing Emergency Management Director organizationally under the Fire Department with appointment to be made by the Mayor; eliminate Administrative Assistant position in EMA, at an annual savings including benefits of approximately $30,000, with person to be retained within the ARC organization (administrative duties to be performed by administrative staff of the Fire Department). Page 5 MR. KUHLKE:Mr. Mayor, I asked to pull this because I'd like to make a motion that this be referred back to the Public Safety Committee. The purpose of this request is that I feel like this is an important issue on where we decide this particular agency goes to perform and function in in the future. And I think particularly it's important for us to communicate with the industries that work with the Emergency Management area, and I think that it needs to be discussed a little bit further in committee and brought back to this Commission. Second. MR. SHEPARD: We have a motion and a second. Any MAYOR YOUNG: discussion on the motion? All in favor of the motion, please vote aye. MOTION CARRIES 10-0. - - END OF EXCERPT -- CERTIFICATION: I, Lena J. Bonner, Clerk of Commission, hereby certify that the above is a true and correct excerpt of the Regular Meeting of Augusta-Richmond County Commission held on April 20, 1999. Clerk of Commission