Sarpy gov. workers' pay raises

The days of healthy pay raises might seem like a distant memory to workers who have seen their pay drop or their jobs disappear.

But for hundreds of government workers in Sarpy County, raises are no mirage.

Pay raises will range from 2 percent to 7 percent in the next fiscal year for workers in city and county government offices across Sarpy County.

Already, 12 of 16 appointed county officials and department heads have received pay raises of 6.9 percent or higher. Those came in July, according to public records obtained by The World-Herald.

The four others received raises of between 3 percent and 5 percent. The pay increases were in the overall county budget approved this summer.

And on Tuesday, the Sarpy County Board is expected to approve pay raises for eight county elected officials.

Sarpy County and the cities of La Vista and Papillion have not had to enact the kind of cost-cutting measures that have taken place in Omaha and some other city and county governments.

In Omaha, Mayor Jim Suttle is asking unions for wage freezes that he says would save the city a total of $5 million a year. In August, the civilian union approved wage freezes for 2009, 2010 and 2011.

The firefighters have signed off on a wage freeze for 2009 and 2010, and police are still in talks.

Finances are stable in La Vista, said Assistant City Administrator Rita Ramirez, “so we don't have to have those discussions.”

The raises don't sit well with all Sarpy officials, however. And for some Sarpy residents, the recession raises underscore a disconnect between government leaders and the taxpayers who fund their salaries.

“It does not send a good message,” said Jason Buffington, 38, who owns a small concrete business in Gretna.

“It's almost like the people who live in Sarpy County all realize they are going through a recession, but it seems the government officials who run Sarpy County often forget we are in a recession,” he said.

The concrete business has declined significantly since the recession started, said Buffington, who has four children ranging in age from 6 to 1.

Last week, Sarpy County Board Chairwoman Joni Jones persuaded fellow board members to freeze their own salaries over a two-year period, citing the recession.

“I believe a pay raise is not an entitlement,” she said. “I just can't believe that so many people who work for a government believe they should have a raise all the time. Some companies can't afford to operate that way, or they would not be in business anymore.”

On Tuesday, the Sarpy board will vote on salary increases for elected officials, including the sheriff, county attorney, surveyor and assessor for the next four-year election cycle.

One board member wants to grant annual pay raises of at least 2.5 percent over each of the four years, including a one-time $10,000 pay raise for the Sarpy County attorney in 2011.

Those eight officeholders initially sought pay raises ranging between 4 percent and 4.5 percent over the four-year period.

Sarpy County still is negotiating pay increases for about 500 county workers who are represented by unions. Contracts with four unions expired in July. Deputy County Administrator Scott Bovick said that if agreements include pay raises, they will be retroactive to July 1.

Papillion's city administrator, Dan Hoins, said the city can afford to award pay raises. In recent years, Papillion's tax base has grown substantially because of new housing and the additions of Shadow Lake Towne Center and Market Pointe shopping center.

On Oct. 20, the Papillion City Council approved spending an extra $67,000 in the new city budget for performance-based salary increases for 36 managers.

The salary hikes in Papillion called for average raises of 3.5 percent for the managers at City Hall — about $1,860 per official. Raises for managers throughout city government would range from 2.5 percent to 5 percent, depending on the person's job evaluation, Hoins said.

“Our managers should be paid a competitive wage for people in similar positions at cities of a similar size,” said Hoins, adding that adequate compensation discourages attrition.

The city's remaining 140 employees — including police officers, firefighters and public works staff — received 3 percent raises effective Oct. 1.

City workers with less than five years on the job can also earn up to 4 percent more in pay raises for a satisfactory evaluation and for another year of employment with the city, Hoins said.

The La Vista City Council recently approved salary increases of 3 percent to 5 percent for most management and nonunion city staff, depending on job performance. Employees receive a 3 percent pay increase for satisfactory work. Merit pay bonuses of an additional 1 percent to 2 percent are given for exceptional work. Employees with poor evaluations might get no raises, Ramirez said.

La Vista employees covered by collective bargaining agreements, including police officers, received 3 percent salary increases Oct. 1, she said.

Even in Sarpy County's smallest communities, Springfield and Gretna, workers received raises around 3 percent.

The exception in Sarpy is the City of Bellevue, which faced unprecedented financial troubles in recent years, causing the new City Council to take a cautious approach to salary increases.

The city's top administrators and department heads have not had pay raises since 2007, said City Administrator Gary Troutman.

Under the Bellevue police union's current four-year contract — which expires in 2010 — officers recently received a 3.5 percent salary increase. Other City Hall workers negotiated 2 percent pay raises in May.

“If the money is not there, there will not be raises,” said Bellevue City Council President Carol Blood. “It's about accountability and transparency.”

Contact the writer:

444-1056, john.ferak@owh.com