Board of Health considers longevity pay changes

WASHINGTON — County health officials discussed possible pay changes for public health staff at a meeting Thursday afternoon, with the county’s budget timetables focused on a January deadline.

“The budget that you’re going to submit to the supervisors needs to be voted on and approved before submission to the Board of Supervisors” Interim Public Health Director Chris Estle said. “That’s why I’m pushing for it now.”

Board of Health member and Supervisor Jack Seward Jr. said the county tentatively aimed for 0% growth in department budgets, but that staff heads could seek to justify increases to the supervisors.

“For so many years, you had an allowable growth that kept going and kept going and kept going without it being justified,” he said. “We found out that there were a lot of budgets that were padded … There’s even been some talk about zero-base budgeting, which is not just looking at what you had last year, but making you justify that line item.”

Estle said such an increase was likely.

“It is a chunk of money, but it’s not a huge chunk of money when you’re looking at it dispersed across salaries,” she said. “I use this analogy … we are the equipment, the people doing the job. We don’t buy equipment because we’re the people doing that work.”

The board plans to meet and decide on a pay matrix at their next meeting, scheduled for Jan. 13.

Estle said she hoped the department would implement changes in the next few months, before the start of the next fiscal year.

“If we were to implement it in the next two or three months, we need to know that information now for working on our FY 2023 budget,” she said. “My request would be to try to discuss it with the board and try to implement it now, so you don’t have the potential to have turnover. You can get in a position with new leadership and move forward.”

The pay matrix itself is not yet settled. Public Health Finance Director Peggy Wood and other staff are coordinating a chart comparing pay for the department’s positions to their counterparts in the private sector, but it’s a complicated process.

“They do it the same way we do it, the salaries posted (are) a lot different than just the salaries, there’s insurance and benefits and everything, we add it together as a lump sum,” Wood said. “You don’t know the actual wage per hour.”

Comments: Kalen.McCain@southeastiowaunion.com