Athens City Council Updates Methods for Certain City Workers' Pay Raises

While contracts dictate the benefits for union workers, it is up to the Athens City Council to determine non-union workers’ benefits in an ordinance voted upon by council members for the new year.While pay-ranges do in fact increase the pay and benefits some city employees receive (as opposed to step-increases) there is a little more to the benefits than just simply increasing pay. Salary range is the range of pay that has been established to be paid to employees performing a particular job or function. Salary range generally has a minimum pay rate, a maximum pay rate, and a series of mid-range opportunities for pay increases.The pay ranges will provide a different method of allocating pay and benefits. In the past, “non-exempt” city employees would have earned pay increases at certain steps. For example, a city employee would go through an initial probationary period of six months. This would be step one. Step two would run through the end of the employee’s first year of employment. After this, the employee would then reach each “step,” furthering their pay at the conclusion of each year.The non-union benefits also includes aspects such as  sick benefits and overtime, as well as the option to defer portions of payment until retirement.City Human Resources Director Claudia Reagan noted that the ranges allow for more flexibility to pay the employees for education and previous experience, along with other factors, whereas step increases require city workers to have a fixed amount of pay raises over certain periods of time.The city of Athens has historically provided for its workers. Full time, non-union or union employees alike have opportunities for voluntary benefits. All full-time employees can enroll in a program that provides dental, deferred compensation, eye insurance and several specific varieties of Aflac coverage.City Council President Jim Sands, Reagan and Service Safety Director Paula Horan-Moseley all worked together to put together new benefits for the workers.Overall, Reagan was pleased with the whole process.“I’ve enjoyed working on the contracts, I think they have gone well. At no point was it uncivil. It was professional yet courteous.”