Twinsburg Announces Raises for City Employees

The 31 non-union employees for the city of Twinsburg will be receiving a 3 percent pay increase in 2012. The max pay range for the non-union employees will increase by 6 percent as well. The 2012 salary ordinance was approved by the city’s council on February 28 by a vote of 6-1. The only dissenter amongst the council was Bob McDermott. The pay increases date back to January 1, 2012. The city will be charged at added $56,500, according to Clayton Morris, the city’s Human Resources Director.

“In the past, a 3 percent pay increase cost the city more in the $80,000 range, but we don’t have as many employees as we did a few years ago,” Morris said.

“I have no problem with the 3 percent pay increase,” McDermott said. “But I think the 6 percent increase of the pay range sends the wrong message. We often have a lot of employees at the top end of the pay range.”

Morris also claims that the new increase permits merit-based pay raises. This could not happen before the approval of the pay range because most employees had reached their salary limit. Police chief Chris Noga and Fire Chief Rick Racine will be making $90,161 and $89,397 respectively for 2012. Their pay tops at $92,800 and $92,900 respectively under the new pay ordinance.

Ted Yates, the president of the council, said there he has no problems increasing the range of pay.

“It doesn’t obligate us to set an employee’s pay at the top of the range, it just gives us more flexibility,” Yates said.

“Our employees have gone three years without a pay increase and they have also recently made the concession of starting to pay significantly more for health care,” Bill Furey, a Councilor, said.

Another resolution approved by the city council last month was for an increase in employee health care contributions from six percent to nine percent towards the end of 2012. The contributions could reach 15 percent by the year 2015. Furey said that Twinsburg is expecting to receive $21.6 million in general fund revenue for 2012 while revenue for 2011 hit $18.2 million. Just over $12 million was set aside in the 2012 budget for the city’s 164 employees’ wages and salaries. Finance Director Karen Howse said that the $12 million also accounts for the three percent increase in pay for all of the city’s employees.

The city’s highest paid employee will continue to remain Mayor Katherine Procop, who is slated to make $92,277 under the new ordinance. Her salary was at $91,531 prior to the approval of the new salary ordinance by city council.