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City staff describe gross payroll report; CFO estimates wages comprise majority of budget
Summary
City staff presented a gross payroll report covering school and city employees; the chief financial officer estimated wages constitute roughly 80–85% of the city's budget and the committee filed the informational item and requested follow-up data about resident employees for specific departments.
City staff presented the 2024 gross payroll report for city and Worcester Public Schools employees and described what the figures include.
“Total compensation paid to each public employee” includes base pay, overtime, detail pay and any retroactive back pay, the chief financial officer said. Timothy McGurthy told the committee that overtime and detail pay can substantially increase total compensation for departments with large overtime opportunities such as police, fire and public works.
When asked what share of the city’s budget payroll represents, McGurthy said he would “guess between 80–85% of our budget is related to wages” but characterized that as an estimate. Staff said precise percentages can be produced from payroll systems, and the auditor offered to deliver more granular data by department and to report the proportion of employees who are Worcester residents if the committee wishes.
The item was informational; the committee voted to file it and directed staff to provide additional breakdowns as part of budget hearings.
