[{"_1":2,"_87":-5,"_88":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6583750,"mediaKeyId","3100431-8ed521ac4dde40eb4d59196d763459cc","parentId",3100431,"title","Segal study finds Shelby County pay ranges below market; HR and elected officials debate compensation policy","audioSeconds",4660,"startMs",3984000,"endMs",8644000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=3100431-8ed521ac4dde40eb4d59196d763459cc&start=3984&end=8644","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3100431-8ed521ac4dde40eb4d59196d763459cc/thumbnail_3984000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6583750/Shelby-County/Tennessee/Segal-study-finds-Shelby-County-pay-ranges-below-market-HR-and-elected-officials-debate-compensation-policy","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6583750-d3dc6935fff1a43e4e54e24c80cdb70a/orig.mp4?Expires=1773710243&Signature=Zs7f2T8SLhpStQ8J7PMYKZViGJuJfaqWd9ihmuPJDrApvxrKEd8jQUqwQ3UYq4KU7nB1jxsewO87hm5IU5En1oFqD5ATFSygLrVG0Yzd0ag8cEEq5tDk8fHlDjD8q~r4Tiw-asu6yj9tCK42uH2BKa1~VEeiOcB73dydIRE4adGrQKB50AAFA5m2ljDVyqYn~3YakInkOJlP725K5vM8n7f3-4W8fZNN0bmZnrKYH-G-3ID4vOrQWRqCE6OwUFSYzHTNsSOrjgEHsNiyEDQzu9WQ543T2KgvrvnPWE2I2hkVWkjCOJoPHDzso8U~WoURtcaOhFCaiCvcNrsDAzVLug__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Shelby County, TN","date","2025-04-23T00:00:00Z","article","Segal consultants told the Shelby County Budget and Finance Subcommittee that a market survey of 101 benchmark jobs shows the county’s pay ranges sit below typical market levels and that pay‑range minimums should be raised by roughly 14%–19% to improve competitiveness.

Mike Verdom, Segal’s vice president for compensation and career strategies, said the county’s current pay‑range minimums across the benchmark set average about 81% of the market and that raising minimums would reduce hiring pressure and internal compression. \"If you move it up 14%, it would move it up to 95% on an overall basis,\" Verdom said during the presentation. Segal planned to deliver preliminary salary‑structure models to the county project team by May 7 and expected to complete structure recommendations by the end of May.

Gerald Thornton, the county’s director of human resources, said the compensation work will be used to evaluate the new salary structure proposed to take effect July 1 and to prepare implementation‑cost models. Thornton and Segal emphasized that an across‑the‑board structure change can be implemented in multiple ways and that Segal would provide analytic tools to model different implementation scenarios.

The study generated immediate policy debate. Alicia Lindsey, chief administrative officer for the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office, raised objections to language in the proposed FY26 compensation policy that she said conflicts with the sheriff’s statutory authority as a constitutional officer; she requested removal of a last bullet in Section G dealing with reclassification and restrictions on public‑safety positions. Thornton said the compensation policy under consideration had been reviewed by the Civil Service Merit Board (CSMB) and that most elected officials had been involved in negotiations; Trustee Regina Newman clarified that elected officials did not vote against the sheriff’s requests during those deliberations.

Several commissioners asked for a clear timeline and cost estimates. Verdom said Segal has identified options and will produce models showing the cost impacts of different approaches; he said Segal had not yet produced a single overall dollar cost because the eventual cost depends on chosen implementation rules and any concurrent actions such as proposed ordinances. Commissioners discussed an ordinance (often referenced in the meeting as a $20.77 minimum wage proposal) that would raise some low pay levels; Thornton said passing and funding that ordinance would materially affect the compensation models and that Segal would need to re‑run cost scenarios if the ordinance is funded.

Director Thornton recommended postponing final adoption of the compensation policy changes until Segal’s report and structure models are complete. \"We should not change this policy until the study is completed,\" Thornton told commissioners. Commissioners asked county staff to provide a documented timeline and implementation options for the May committee meeting and asked the county attorney’s office to review legal questions raised by constitutional‑officer language in the policy.

No final action was taken on the compensation policy at the subcommittee meeting. Segal’s team and county HR will return with the salary‑structure models and cost scenarios in the coming weeks for committee review.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Shelby County, TN - --> FY2026 Budget Subcommittee #7 Meeting for April 23, 2025 - Apr 23, 2025","oneSentenceSummary","A compensation study presented to Shelby County commissioners found pay‑range minimums below market and recommended raising ranges; the county’s proposed FY26 compensation policy and the timing of an ordinance to raise low wages prompted debate among elected officials and HR staff.","taxTitle","Shelby County, Tennessee","taxId",19114,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6583755,"Shelby County sheriff urges full funding of FY2026 budget, warns against 'salary restrictions'",3911,45000,3956000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=3100431-8ed521ac4dde40eb4d59196d763459cc&start=45&end=3956","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/3100431-8ed521ac4dde40eb4d59196d763459cc/thumbnail_45000.jpg","/articles/6583755/Shelby-County/Tennessee/Shelby-County-sheriff-urges-full-funding-of-FY2026-budget-warns-against-salary-restrictions","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6583755-1f988012ee18a568ce1f6220b4f3a4bf/orig.mp4?Expires=1773710243&Signature=fNBgOLEisrHY4yIu5RxwPCOhaKVIQMnmSMi5WTLAnCSiFHO7pujH96kTmQh4UlbGC9rdVJJeaGXMTX~0HxvYsb-OtCFQEWOhNqNgLUTXHV4yUqcfVuSmW94d~xO21aZkRa-4GNTujaLxkjxgUl72vumlafACzLK-bAWIuHFrXojyMSEuVt9g0uKtEx9~jvrRMby9sStCmxiOMBw-SUUu3rUjVZ6guOb4X8clGKEm2lINdJdvnYRWU3MoaX4NYhVL2hJ2nsxYnSI8-nzhA3Q4dAf8HEbqocKi8z4pK9szd7e1vOKFeuYPcXTmE6Mh36Pda2h1-pvksrSBengKncmYDQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner told the Budget and Finance Subcommittee that his office’s fiscal year 2026 request seeks about $16,000,000 in new expenditures to cover overtime, equipment, technology and urgent jail repairs, and that the office opposes any salary‑restriction or vacancy‑savings language in the final budget resolution.

The sheriff’s chief administrative officer, Alicia Lindsey, told the subcommittee the sheriff’s office will return unspent funds to the general fund but said preemptive reductions tied to an account labeled “salary restriction” or “vacancy savings” undermine the sheriff’s constitutional authority and impede staffing flexibility. \"Let me be clear: Sheriff Bonner does not support the use of salary restrictions, vacancy savings, or any restrictions in the Shelby County Sheriff's Office fiscal year 2026 budget,\" Lindsey said.

The request includes a $3,700,000 overtime increase after the office reported an $11.7 million overtime budget and roughly $17,000,000 spent through March in the current year, with three months remaining. Lindsey said state inmate housing reimbursement runs about $41 per day while the county’s cost is about $66 per day. The presentation also listed capital and maintenance priorities including patrol vehicles ($1,000,000), mobile data terminals ($2,570,000), professional and contractor services ($1,500,000) and a $1,200,000 request for building renovations at two county facilities.

Lindsey said the office is awaiting a master jail study expected May 6 and called a new jail the department’s top capital priority, citing increasing detainee counts and infrastructure that does not meet Tennessee Corrections Institute (TCI) standards. Kirk Fields, chief jailer, described recent door replacements in the older facility that have reduced incidents and addressed obsolete parts, saying the new swing doors are “pretty much tamper proof.”

Several commissioners pressed the sheriff’s team on the vacancy‑savings practice. Commissioner Ford and others said the size of the county’s vacancy savings in recent years has increased and that the policy effectively reduces elected officials’ budgets. Deputy Director of Administration and Finance Michael Thompson and Chief Administrative Officer Lindsey gave different descriptions of how the county currently accounts for vacancy savings; Lindsey said the county has an $82,000,000 restriction overall and that the sheriff’s office has been asked previously to identify positions to restrict, a step the sheriff’s office said it never agreed to.

Thompson provided an analysis of fiscal year 2025 vacancy savings by office and cited Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA) guidance supporting vacancy‑savings forecasting. He told commissioners that, nine months into the fiscal year, the sheriff’s office had recorded approximately $47,300,000 in vacancy savings versus a $44,000,000 budgeted amount, and said the approach is a common practice among governments to forecast personnel expenditures.

The presentation also itemized prior year capital and repair spending and encumbrances. Lindsey said the office had requested roughly $16,500,000 in repairs for FY25 and listed major categories — doors ($6,700,000), elevators ($2,300,000), kitchen equipment ($1,200,000) and other building improvements — and said the office will continue capital maintenance while awaiting the master jail study.

The subcommittee did not take a vote on the sheriff’s budget during the presentation. Commissioners asked for follow‑up information, including details on overtime drivers, the state inmate reimbursement calculation, and documentation on the county’s use of vacancy savings. The sheriff’s office and finance staff said they will provide follow‑up materials to the committee.","Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner and his top administrators presented a $16 million FY2026 request focused on overtime, jail repairs and a new jail master plan, and urged commissioners to exclude salary‑restriction or vacancy‑savings language from the budget resolution.","actionData","errors"]

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Segal study finds Shelby County pay ranges below market; HR and elected officials debate compensation policy

Shelby County sheriff urges full funding of FY2026 budget, warns against 'salary restrictions'