Court hears workforce compensation plan: 3% COLA, reclass estimate and phased IT hires
Get AI-powered insights, summaries, and transcripts
Subscribe
Summary
Staff recommended a 3% cost-of-living/structure adjustment across elected officials and county staff, estimated $2.3 million for professional reclass alignments affecting about 1,600 employees, and phased hiring for IT positions; commissioners sought more detail on reclasses, position counts and timing.
Staff presented a workforce compensation package that includes a 3% cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) and a 3% structural increase for both law-enforcement and non-law-enforcement pay structures.
Key numbers and staff explanation: Bob Wilson, Human Resources Director, told the court the $2,300,000 estimate for professional-schedule reclass adjustments is approximate and would likely affect roughly 1,600 employees as the county continues incremental market alignment work following a Korn Ferry compensation study. "This is an estimate, it's probably 1,600 employees," Wilson said during the presentation.
ARPA positions and law enforcement: Staff noted 69 positions originally funded by ARPA in FY25 were budgeted for nine months in that year; FY2026 budgeting would cover full-year costs for those positions. Law enforcement baseline changes included a $15,000,000 net increase based on a three-year average of actuals described by staff as an effort to "right size" the sheriff's office budget.
IT hiring and phasing: The major-technology fund recommended an $84,000,000 allocation for IT operations and $2,000,000 for capital projects; staff recommended phasing vacant IT positions into the budget starting in the third quarter of FY2026 to reduce immediate budget pressure. Commissioners asked for a timeline showing which vacant positions would be delayed and for the department to return with a hiring schedule tied to the court’s adopted budget.
Directions and next steps: Commissioners asked HR to provide the detailed backup for the $2.3 million reclass estimate (which positions, departments and counts), and directed IT and administration to return a precise phasing plan for the 33 additional IT positions previously approved for hire, including the number of positions to be delayed and associated timing.
Ending: Staff agreed to provide a breakdown of reclass candidates, the expected headcount affected, turnover data for the professional schedule, and a phased IT hiring timeline before the next formal budget vote.