Auditor payroll modernization prompts staffing debate; county examines jail monitoring grant
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Summary
Walla Walla County HR and commissioners discussed a move to more frequent payroll as part of an ERP upgrade and a possible new position to support payroll. Commissioners asked for more data before approving additional staff. HR also described a $25,000 risk-pool scholarship for jail wrist or ceiling monitors to track detainee vitals.
County human resources and commissioners on April 28 discussed a likely change to more frequent payroll processing tied to an ERP (enterprise resource planning) upgrade and the staffing implications for the auditors office.
Josh Griffith, HR and Risk Manager, told commissioners the county is preparing for a payroll cadence change (semi-monthly or biweekly) as part of Workday implementation. The auditors office currently processes payroll monthly, and Griffith said the auditor does not have the staff capacity to move directly to two payroll runs each month without additional help.
Commissioners pressed for more information. Commissioner Kimball said he would have a hard time approving a new position for the auditor when the auditors office currently has an open chief deputy slot that has been vacant for roughly a year and a half. Commissioner Clayton and others asked for data showing workload, duty reassignments if a chief deputy were filled, and the functionality of the ERP system before agreeing to hire another staffer.
Griffith said he will assemble documentation and a hiring-exception proposal for the board; commissioners requested data about duties, expected time savings, and alternatives such as filling the existing chief deputy role.
Jail monitoring grant: Griffith also described a $25,000 scholarship-like grant offered through the county risk pool (WCRP) to obtain either wristband monitors or ceiling-mounted monitors that track vitals (heart rate, body temperature) to alert staff to detainee distress. Griffith said 19 counties currently use similar wrist monitors; the county will collect more information and demonstrations before deciding whether to accept and install the equipment.
Sick-leave donation cap: Griffith raised one additional personnel item: an employee who exhausted leave is at the limit of donated sick leave under county rules (160 hours). He said the board can vote to exceed that cap for an individual case; commissioners gave informal nods to receive a formal proposal.
Why it matters: Payroll frequency affects department workloads, internal control, vendor timing and budget administration. Commissioners said they will need documentation to evaluate trade-offs before approving new positions.
Next steps: HR will prepare a hiring-exception proposal with supporting documentation, and county staff will gather more detail on the jail-monitoring technologies and the leave-donation exception for board consideration.
