Laserfiche WebLink
Councilmember Musgrove stated she has an appetite to look at and consider a wage freeze because <br /> she has heard from the private sector that there is potentially a wave of layoffs coming. <br /> Finance Director Lund shared that if they remove the balance due for the firetruck from the budget <br /> then it would bring the increase down to 8.3%. <br /> Councilmember Howell shared that she would be okay with the wage freeze for positions that are <br /> within 15% of the average of the department heads and not freezing the positions that have a more <br /> than 15% gap. She said that as residents are laid off or do not get pay raises in the private sector, <br /> they will struggle to keep up with these increases in taxes. <br /> City Administrator Hagen explained that he calculated the gaps between his position and the <br /> average of all of the department heads salaries for his salary, then calculated the gap between the <br /> department heads and the average of their direct reports. <br /> Councilmember Howell shared that if this was less than 15% then she would have an issue with <br /> it, but if there is a way to keep wages within the 15% gap, she does not think this would be terrible <br /> to do for one year. <br /> City Administrator Hagen noted that the proposed wages are based on the market average. <br /> Councilmember Riley said he does not support blindly going with the market rate for every <br /> position as not all positions are comparable. He added that there are also a few positions that are <br /> fairly new to the City and these positions did not inherit wages that have not grown and the market <br /> rate already was a factor when they created the position. <br /> Councilmember Howell asked if this is specific to just the department heads that they are <br /> discussing. <br /> Councilmember Riley said yes. <br /> Councilmember Musgrove said this is a good point to consider. <br /> Mayor Kuzma stated that if they are going to be giving all of the unions market rate adjustments, <br /> then they should be fair and do the same for the department heads. He noted that it is difficult to <br /> pick and choose who does and does not get a wage adjustment. He said managing this in the long <br /> run seems simpler than trying to save a few dollars. <br /> Councilmember Specht said that market rates are a never-ending target that they have to try to <br /> keep up with. He agreed with Councilmember Riley about not needing market rate adjustments on <br /> new positions. <br /> Councilmember Howell shared that in the private sector, the person at the top is the person who <br /> gets paid last. She reiterated that she does not have an issue with freezing the department head <br /> wages. <br /> City Council Work Session/August 27, 2024 <br /> Page 4 of 12 <br />