According to a study that was done a few years ago, (the Singer Study) Salisbury Employees are being paid 8% more than other municipalities in the state. The ONLY area in which employees weren't paid enough was actually the Salisbury Police Department. Their salaries were -18% LESS.
One other issue I found extremely interesting is the fact that ALL City Employees have the second highest benefit package in the state. Let me also share some of the other municipalities in the study.
Annapolis
Cambridge
Dover
Easton
Hagerstown
Frederick
OC
PRMC
SU
Sussex County
Town Of OC
UMES
Worcester County
Fist of all, I was not aware such a study had been done. Secondly, you have to wonder WHY this hasn't been exposed by the Main Stream Media. My guess, it doesn't fit the Mayors agenda.
Currently Mayor Ireton is behind the scenes asking for a pay increase to the rest of the City Employees. Yet the study clearly shows the only group grossly underpaid is the Salisbury Police Department.
Since the study was completed, the only thing we've ALL experienced is a deep recession. I'd have to say that IF City Employees are not happy with their work environment, something must be wrong with Department Heads, especially in the Public Works Department.
As many of you will recall last week, quite a few Public Works Employees came forward on PAC 14 stating they were not being treated equally, or perhaps unfairly. According to this study they are incorrect. When their pay is 8% ABOVE average and the SPD is 18% BELOW average, the Public Works Director need to sit down with those employees and share this study.
This is something Mayor Ireton should have been on top of as well. Again, he's a School Teacher, NOT a business person with experience. Also remember, the Mayor has this information at his fingertips.
Now some might say this isn't a popular Post for me to put up, considering I'm running for Mayor. However, the truth is the truth. I'm not sure if this link will work but I'll put it up and see. SingerGroup42705.pdf
26 comments:
This is why I come to Salisbury News. This information is vital to all of us. Here I've been feeling sorry for city employees only to find out they are being paid more then most. Mrs. Gardner should be fired.
I've heard mention of the study before, but am glad that you posted it so that we can see for ourselves.
Throw that bum of a mayor out immediately.
Don't like your city job with benefits? Move on then and give your job to someone unemployed, I'm sure the pay and benefits would be a lot better than most are doing these days.
That graphic states the data only surveyed specific titles to get to this information: "Actual Salaries of Salisbury's employees very widely in relation to the market depending on title...".
It could well be that a few, favored positions were used in the survey which drove the numbers up. Or not. But it's clear that you cannot make a simple blanket statement about all employees based upon this posted information which admits it survey was partial.
I am also confused as to how a salary can be "7% above the market range minimum" and "8% above market at range midpoint and...the maximum." Wouldn't a higher salary be even higher than the minimum vs the midpoint or maximum (which are both larger numbers)?
I hope that you can break this down in more detail. Right now it doesn't seem to make sense as you present it.
This post was meant to be clear to those of us who read SBY NEWS on a regular basis.The 8% per cent issue is perfectly understandable to those of us who are'nt accountants.It is an approximate estimate derived from all available information.
I would have to agree with 1138. Take the fire department for example. Their average salaries are at least $3000 below the national average for cities that size
Nice data. I had no idea this study existed. I would love to see a cost/benefit analysis by each department including retirement, perks and pension costs vs annual entire cost to the tax payers.
Because of the CRIME is so high in those areas, they have to offer higher salaries. If they didnt, you would have a crime filled area with NO police!
The Big Bucks are at the "Top" where they need to be cut!!
Wow, I knew Cindy Lunsford was a megalomaniac, but I had no idea she had turned PRMC into a municipality.
I'm not a fan of the mayor but I know for a fact that he wasn't mayor when this survey started. Also there were a lot of people who work in Salisbury that didn't get raises. A lot of people haven't received raises in 4 or 5 years & that includes cost of living. The people that received the raises didn't really need them that much I do know.
12:27 shows the fire department is ready to come back and use their city paid uniforms and city paid vehicles to whine.
Why is it that everyone thinks the police department gets so much when the reality is they have been held together by chewing gum? Every single time the police get anything, everyone else come out to whine.
But do you ever see any other department come out and whine when the fire boys get something?
Where were all the public works employees those times? Makes you wonder about what's really going on.
Well, Joe, there you go again, exposing all the hard paid for studies that our taxes went to and exposed them to actual daylight! I hope you're proud of yourself, young man, because all of us certainly are! To the naysayers, even if this was done in the Old Bag era, wages and bennies have certainly not risen 8% since then, so you jus' shutch' mouth! The Firefighters? Really? What, do you average in all the 0's the Vollies get paid to lower the average? Besides, they wanted a gazillion dollar Palace and a ladder truck and a farboat and NEVER griped about salary, so you jus' shutcho' mouth!
Bring the Police salaries up to the averages where they should be, and keep saving the pittance that's left over in the coffers to fix the WWTP before all that money will just have to go to pay the EPA fines.
Okay, I'm done for now.
GB
When was this study performed? There was one performed by this group around 2005. If this is the same one then it's a little outdated. Also the " municipalities" used in the comparison are not very representative of Salisbury. The reason for the three ranges is because city employees are paid based on a range of salary amount based on the job position. There is a minimum, midpoint and maximum. When the study was performed in 2005, the city was supposed to use this to pay employees based on performance and return back to a step system so that employees would get some type of raise each year. That was never implemented.
As far as police officer pay goes one has to remember that maybe their annual pay is less than some other local communities but the city police is a part of the State LEOPS program which is the Rolls Royce of police retirements and costs the city a fortune each year.
So is SFD
Those used for comparison are the competition for the employment base.
Joe:
Only reason the SPD appears to be underpaid is because they include the State police in MD and DE, which are grossly overpaid. And the SPD has LEOPS (what a taxpayer screw job) thanks to Barrie, Bubba Comegys and Mikey Dunn.
Actually a large part of the vollies get a $500 check from the city, and as far as the department wanting that "palace" and tower truck, wrong again. The majority of the members, career and volunteer did NOT want either. But a couple of the Big wigs" did and that's what they got. And the FD did request Cost of living increases as well as personelle, but were told not to even ask.
Fire Dept. turned out in droves to get their fire grant. Don't want to hear most didn't want their big expensive palace or trucks. They better not show up to demand raises too. They got everything.
I feel for the little guys of public works, but I haven't had a raise in 5 years and I got no health insurance benefits so I'm not sure I want to hear it from them either. Let them get a better job if they can. I'm just happy to still have one.
If the cops are leaving because they can get better pay then you better pay them so they don't. Unlike the other departments they don't show up in uniforms and whine. Things got better with the new chief so support her. People used to get shot up in their stores, on the streets and in their homes not long ago. It's better now. So pay the cops so it don't get bad again.
They turned out for the grant because they worked on it together and supported it and it saved the city a lot of money as well as improved service. They did not support the other items . Your entitled to your opinion, but these are the facts.
Yes, the city is top heavy in salary. The worker bees are the ones who have suffered, especially those in Public Works.
there are several positions that were proven to be underpaid , the council agreed and funded upgrades for some positions but others have been unfunded for several years
anonymous 8:50, not according to this research. That being said, I'd be more than happy to look into what you are suggesting and of course I would keep everything absolutely quiet in doing so.
There are some comments here that are also untrue. The comparison was done equally from city to city.
Mind you, the study was done in 2005 but we've been in a deep recession since then.
IF ANYONRE is underpaid I will do everything in my power to correct that. I have always stated from the beginning, I want to RETAIN every employee I possibly can. In fact, I'd like to entertain bringing BACK some of the employees who were treated unfairly in the past, IF they are willing to come back.
take a look at this past years budget the mayor wanted to fund the money but the council shot it down
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